


At The Start

by larxenethefirefly



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (1963), Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Gallifrey
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-02-09
Updated: 2014-09-12
Packaged: 2018-01-11 18:20:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 25,760
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1176337
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/larxenethefirefly/pseuds/larxenethefirefly
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>At the start, she was frightened, and he was intrigued. At the end, she was determined, and he was scared on her behalf. AU where Rose is a Time Lady and she and the Doctor navigate friendship, love, and political loopholes on Gallifrey.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Kelkat9](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kelkat9/gifts).



> Written for kelkat9 for her birthday!!! Happy birthday KK~  
> Beta'ed by lunarsilverwolfstar. Thank you SO MUCH.  
> Rating is all ages for now, but will go up later, as will further warnings. I'll be sure to include the changes in the A/N when the time comes.

Theta let out a chiming string of swear words as his teacher sent the assignments to their tablets.

It was a group activity.

Normally, this wouldn’t have bothered him. He liked working with his peers, seeing what made different personalities tick, how different strengths balanced each other out. But he and Koschei had gotten into an argument just last week and they still hadn’t made up, and their usual circle of friends were avoiding both of them so they wouldn’t have to choose sides. Which meant he had a limited array of classmates to choose from and only a week to do the project. 

He took a quick inventory of the class. There were ten possible candidates, all of whom weren’t particularly special but, he supposed, brilliant in their own right for being in advanced classes. Six of them, he knew, already had default partners who they worked well with, which shrunk the pool down to four. Since Koschei would grab one of those, that only left three; and he knew which one his best friend would claim, so that left Theta the option of the blonde girl in the corner, obnoxious Luric, or bland Gareth.

He weighed his options. Luric was annoying but would do the work, and Gareth was brilliant, but had no imagination in him whatsoever. Each would drive him equally barmy, but perhaps if he insisted upon working separately...

Drat. Luric had bounded up to Gareth, which left the blonde girl in the corner.

He knew who she was, of course. Arkytior was new to his class, a few decades younger than everyone there, and had parents who were considered eccentric because of their insistence upon using Old High Gallifreyan. She didn’t draw much attention to herself, preferring to spend time with Time Lords more her own age or wandering around alone, and they didn’t frequent the same circles due to that. It had never really occurred to him to get to know her; she was just so different, and her family on such a lower class level than his, that the thought never really crossed his mind.

Well, he thought, here went nothing.

~*~

He found almost immediately that she preferred to go by Rose, that she was interested in universal cultures, and was an unusually strong empath for their species.

“I know you don’t want me as a partner,” Rose had said when he approached her. “So I’ll do my bit and you can do yours and we won’t even have to meet.”

He had stared at her for a second. “What?” he asked, eloquently.

“The project. You normally work with Koschei, and I know that you don’t want to work with me. So just tell me what I need to do and I’ll send it to you through the tablet when I’m done,” she replied.

He frowned. “How did you know that?”

She shrugged. “I’ve been in classes with you for six years. And before you came over here the annoyance was practically tangible. Don’t feel so surprised; this is a cultural class, and my mentor wouldn’t have put me in here if there wasn’t a reason.”

Theta studied her for a moment. “I never noticed you, before.”

“That’s because you never wanted to,” she replied, her eyes hazy and distant and her voice oddly tonal. “For such a brilliant mind, you sure do have a way of ignoring Time and that which you don’t want to admit.”

Unsettled, he said, “What do you mean?

She blinked. “What?”

“What do you mean, I ignore Time?”

She flinched, and hurriedly began packing up her things. “I… I’m sorry. Ignore that. I just say silly things sometimes, they mean nothing. Just message me my part and I’ll get it to you as soon as possible.”

“Wait!” he called out as she scampered. “Arky…!”

“It’s Rose!” she interrupted and swiftly exited the classroom.

Koschei was waiting for him as he left. “I see you got stuck with blondie,” he commented.

Theta regarded him warily. “So?”

“She’s weird,” he said, wrinkling his nose. “I heard she almost caused two Time Lords to regenerate when she looked into the Vortex. It drove her mental, they said.”

Theta frowned. “That’s not funny, Koschei.”

“What? It’s true. Ask Borusa; he was there.” He turned to walk off. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you!”

Theta snorted and headed to his next class. “Your fault I was stuck with her, you arrogant prick,” he muttered.

~*~

True to her word, Rose sent him her portion of the project a few days later. It was a beautiful structural model of Lilllllllllam’s social hierarchy from the first civilization to the end, and he would have had a hard time of doing a better job if he ever put forth effort. Even though she had never been to Lilllllllllam, she seemed to have an exceptional understanding of their culture, as well as to the whys and hows of its development. It was the first time he had heard from her since class, beyond the brief confirmation that she had received his message.

“This is brilliant!” he replied after he got it. “My part isn’t nearly as well done.”

He received her reply a few minutes later. “Thank you. I’m sure yours is acceptable for the grade we desire.”

It was unusually formal; it bothered him, but before he could reply Borusa sent him a nasty glare and a pointed remark. By the time the class was over, he was ready to return home and her words had all but vanished from his mind.

The next time he saw her was in class. He and Koschei had made up by that point, but she seemed determined to ignore him. Not once did she make eye contact and she had left the room before he could make his way over to talk to her.

Then Koschei started talking, and once again, he forgot all about her.

After the Academy let out for the day and he finally managed to extricate himself from his friends, Theta took his weekly walk through the gardens. It was quiet and nearly deserted, designed to optimize a sense of peace and tranquility, and as usual he took a different route than last week. The path was little-used and, if he hadn’t been short on time, he would have investigated it last week.

Theta was investigating a small colony of wood ants when he heard raised voices. Curious, he stood and peered around an Un’Gurt Tree, where a circle of boys had surrounded something small. They were hurting it, whatever it was, but before he could move a pink-and-yellow blur burst out of a nearby bush and knocked the closest boy over. “Knock it off!” she exclaimed, bending over to protect the creature.

One of the boys sneered. “What’s it to you? You’re no better than it.”

The newcomer raised their head and he was shocked to see it was Rose. “It didn’t choose what it is in life,” she insisted. “And can’t you tell it’s scared? It just wants to go back home.”

“It doesn’t belong here,” one boy insisted, as another piped up, “Well, you two have something in common, then.”

Rose raised her head proudly as she lifted the small animal into her arms. “Abuse of lesser beings is against the Law. I could report you for this.”

Instantly, the boys grew nervous. “As if. My father wouldn’t let you,” the tallest one said.

Rose regarded him steadily. “Want to take that bet?”

Both parties stared at each other, before one boy spoke. “Whatever. As if some half-breed freak scares us. I have better things to do anyway.”

They stalked off, not bothering to look back at her, either from nerves or disdain, he couldn’t tell. Rose looked down at the animal in her arms and smiled comfortingly. “It’s alright,” she said soothingly. “I’ll make certain you get back home. What are you doing so far into the Gardens, anyway?” she frowned as the animal gave a yelp. “Did they hurt you?”

Theta stepped out from behind the tree. “There’s a shed not far from here that contains first aid if it needs it.”

Rose gasped and jumped as she saw him. “What are you doing here?” she exclaimed, adjusting the animal in her arms as if protecting it from him.

“I take a walk through here once a week,” he replied. “What have you got there, anyway?”

She hesitated, then finally relaxed her arms. His eyes widened as he took in the bedraggled shape of a mountain wolf pup. “What’s that doing here?” he asked.

“He’s lost,” Rose replied. “And half-starved. I guess he wandered in from the Old Section while playing and got lost. You said there’s a station here?”

He nodded. “Follow me.”

He took her back down the path, toward the more popular section. The shed was tucked up behind a fruit grove, and Rose used the small pond beside it to bathe the pup as he located and retrieved the first aid supplies. He watched from the shore as Rose scrubbed him down, robes tucked around her belt in a way that was terribly improper, but necessary, as the baby squirmed and barked unhappily. Theta was amused to see that she was using a handful of moss as the scrub brush, but it proved useful as the mud and dust gave way to reveal the pup’s golden-white fur beneath. “There you are, handsome boy,” she cooed. “Now let’s get you patched up.”

She let go of his scruff and the wolf bounded through the water, splashing her as it made its way to shore. Theta yelped as it shook the water off its coat beside him and he scrambled out of the way as he was showered with water. Rose laughed as she waded back towards him, feet squelching in the mud.

She helped him keep the wolf still long enough until he ran the scanner over its body. “Nothing damaging,” he replied. “He’ll have a few bruises on his side, but you stopped them before they could inflict any damage.” Theta retrieved the dermal regenerator, setting it appropriately before moving it over the wolf’s side. The puppy squirmed a bit at the strange sensation, but seemed to relax when it was over.

Rose let if sniff around the cottage as Theta replaced the medical supplies. She hummed as she let her feet dry, smiling as she looked up at the sky. The red grass billowed around her, yet it still wasn’t quite as soft as the grass back at his home.

“You know what saving that wolf means, don’t you?” he asked as he settled down beside her. “There’s a reason Mountain Wolves are frowned upon. Once they form a bond, it cannot be broken.”

Rose smiled a little as she watched the puppy frolick. “I couldn’t let it suffer. Bad enough I could feel it’s pain, but knowing I could have done something to stop it and not do anything…” she trailed off. “And besides, we’re in this together, now. You healed it, too.”

“Yes,” he sighed. “I did.”

They watched as the wolf clumsily pounced after something and, judging from the dejected posture, he had missed. “What shall we call him?” Rose asked, as the puppy made its way back to them.

Theta stared as the wolf pup curled up in Rose’s lap and licked his hand before falling asleep. “Why have you been avoiding me lately?” he asked instead.

She studied the puppy. “I’m not safe,” she admitted. “Not to mention my family isn’t one yours would take kindly for you to be associated with.”

“Is that why those boys called you a half-breed?” he asked.

Rose winced, but nodded. “My father is an inventor,” she replied. “One day, he was off testing one of his inventions when the ground collapsed beneath him not far from an Outsider village. He was found and nursed back to health by a woman there, and they fell in love. He insisted upon taking her with him when he returned to the City. They married, and had me a year later.” She kept her eyes averted as she slowly stroked the pup’s fur. “I was a natural-born, so that made it worse. If my parents had agreed to looming they might not have been so ostracized, but then again, my father’s family has always been eccentric.” She quirked a smile. “Much like yours, I imagine.”

He nodded, because his family was a bit odd. “Except I was adopted, so I don’t know who I am.”

“You’re you,” she replied. “Except I can’t call you Theta, because that isn’t a name.”

“What would you call me, then?” he asked.

Rose considered. “Doctor,” she said. “I’ll call you Doctor.”

He considered for a moment. It was presumptuous, since he was far from having a doctorate in anything (not that Gallifrey used those titles), but it… fit. Somehow, it fit. Someone who made things better. “I like it,” he said, amazed. 

The wolf pup snuffled and Rose smiled at him. “I’d better make this guy a home, think of a name. I’ll… see you in class tomorrow for the project, right?”

The Doctor nodded. “You will. See you tomorrow, Rose.”

~*~

The project went off without a hitch, Rose’s model proving to be the best in the class and resulting in his first ever high score in the subject. She was the consummate professional during the presentation, smoothly adjusting for his slip-ups yet still letting him be the center of attention where he thrived. Their teacher was reluctantly impressed and gave them the highest marks.

“That was brilliant!” Rose burst out as they exited the classroom. “Did you see the look on his face when we showed our models? I thought he had sucked on a lemon!”

Despite himself, he giggled. “It’s all thanks to you, you know. That model was the best I’ve ever seen.”

She blushed. “Thanks. I, er…” she hesitated, then continued. “I was actually wondering if you would like to partner with me again next time. Unless you’d like to work with Koschei. I don’t… whatever you’d like.”

The Doctor remembered how those boys had treated her, and the fact she had very few friends because of her heritage. And truth be told, he liked working with her. She couldn’t be blamed for her family, and so far none of Koschei’s warnings had proven true. The Doctor wondered if Koschei could actually tell the truth if it wasn’t for his own benefit, then instantly felt bad for saying so. His friend had a difficult home life; it wasn’t his fault.

“I think I’d like that,” he finally replied.

Rose smiled. “Really?”

“Yeah.” He nodded.

Her smile turned dazzling. “I’ll see you next week, Doctor.”

“Bye, Rose,” He replied, and couldn’t help but match her smile.


	2. Chapter 2

They agreed to meet once a week to work on projects or homework, in a tiny corner of the Academy’s library designated to music culture. She often brought treats from her family home that her parents sent her; qua’lot spheres and starfruit and other exotic fruits and vegetables that her mother liked to grow. He was especially taken with bananas so she started bringing them every day. “Sure you aren’t related to a monkey?” Rose teased one day after he had devoured an impressive amount of them in short time.

He sniffed. “Time Lord. We aren’t descended from apes.”

Rose giggled. “If you say so.” She looked back at her essay. “Do you understand the H’lax paradox? I have a twenty-page essay due next week over the causes and resolutions.”

“But it was never resolved!”

“I know,” she said, miserably.

By talking to her, the Doctor learned that Rose’s problem wasn’t a lack of reading timelines; rather, she saw too much. In response, the Council had banned her from using her time-sense. They claimed it was to protect her, since the events surrounding her viewing the Vortex was, apparently, traumatic enough to cause near-regenerations. He was old enough to be suspicious about their motives, but young enough to not question it too hard. He figured there was probably a reason and, so long as Rose had no problem with it, he kept his peace.

Since he had to write the same essay, he willingly shifted his focus to that particular thread. “You know it’s a never-ending loop, right?” he asked. 

“Yes. I gathered that much from the lecture,” she muttered.

He delved into the time lines and she took notes on all he said. When he asked if it was alright, she grinned mischievously. “I was told to use outside resources in lieu of my... condition. So as far as I’m concerned, you’re an outside source.”

“I like the way you think,” he laughed and they settled in to write the paper. Since she was, essentially, using his perception of the time lines, their paper turned out similar, but there were enough differences they conjectured that it wouldn’t be considered plagiarism. Rose pulled random phrases out of a few books tangentially related in order to give the paper an extra bit of variance before collecting their things and heading back to their respective rooms.

“How’s Tempus?” he asked. He hadn’t seen the wolf pup in a while; Rose was hiding him in a part of the garden where no one frequented and he hadn’t managed to make his way there since she relocated him.

“Well. He caught a wild Jezluriat the other day; he even left some for me.” She wrinkled her nose. “I had to wait until he wandered off so I could dispose of it.”

He laughed. “At least you didn’t gain a S’leah as familiar; it would never leave you alone.”

Rose shuddered. “Thank goodness for that.” They reached the hallway where their paths diverged and she asked, “Do you think you can visit tomorrow? He misses you.”

He considered. “Yeah. I think so.” He still wasn’t happy with the idea of accidentally forming an emotional bond with the pup, but he had to admit it was nice, knowing that someone looked forward to seeing him regularly without ulterior motives in mind.

“See you tomorrow then, Doctor,” Rose replied.

And, as was his standard, he replied with a “Bye, Rose,” and headed to his lonely room.

~*~

Tempus had grown exponentially since his last visit and the Doctor was momentarily startled. “You sure that’s the same wolf?” he asked and Rose rolled her eyes.

“Yes, I’m sure,” she replied as Tempus bounded over, nuzzling her hand. Upon seeing the Doctor, however, he let loose a bark and nearly bowled him over. 

“Down boy!” he yelped, alarmed, and scratched Tempus’s head as the wolf braced himself on the Doctor’s chest. The wolf whined. He sighed and gave another, firmer ruffle, trying to ignore how pleased he was about the wolf’s reaction to him.

Rose dragged him down and threw a stick down the path. Tempus scrambled after it. “You’ve turned a majestic creature that hunts for its food into a lapdog,” he complained, mostly out of principle.

She didn’t take him seriously. “He’s still a puppy. Why can’t he enjoy the time? Besides, he hunts perfectly fine. If I wasn’t banned from telepathic exchanges I would show you.”

The Doctor had been slumped down into the grass, but sat up at her words. “Right, about that. Why not? Everyone treats you like some fragile china doll or are scared of you. What happened when you were eight?”

Rose averted her eyes. “I... don’t really remember. I just... when I looked into the untempered schism, I heard this.... singing. And then everything turned gold. When I came to, Borusa looked scared, and the two Council members were unconscious. My classmates had fled. I was later told their memories were wiped, and that my mind was too unstable to uphold the telepathic connections with other Time Lords.” She curled in on herself a little more. “It’s... without the ability to control my own mind, I can’t suppress it. My mind is blocked from me, and... I’m an empath, Doctor. Without the ability to dull that, it’s overwhelming. Every emotion constantly pouring in... the Council said they’re trying to help me, but you weren’t there, Doctor.” She grabbed his hand, shaking. “Their minds... they thought of me as a thing, a half-breed, and they weren’t concerned. They were pleased they were eliminating a threat,” she spat. 

He was growing more and more alarmed. “Rose, calm down,” he begged. “This isn’t like you...”

Rose’s eyes snapped to his and they were glowing gold, just like that day in class. “They will be the instrument to their own downfall,” she vowed, voice echoing. She held his hand in a death grip. “Time doesn’t like being ignored, and it listens to no one but Itself. Ashes to ashes, dust to dust, all returns to Time and Time is master to us all.” She gasped. 

“Stop it!” he shouted. Vaguely, he heard Tempus howling in alarm. “Whoever you are, whatever you are, let go of Rose! She doesn’t deserve this! Leave her alone!”

The being inside Rose smiled. “Ah, little lordling. You know nothing. Not yet. One day, it will be clear. Time’s Champion is still sleeping; you will realize your destiny when the Wolf awakes.” She cocked her head. “But there are others coming. I must go, for now.” Her eyes flashed. “Remember, little one, Time listens to no one.” 

Rose’s eyes rolled into the back of her head and she slumped into him. Tempus was still howling and, through the haze of fear and confusion, he felt the muted buzz of approaching Time Lords. “Tempus! Go away!” he hissed. “They cannot see you!”

The wolf pup whined.

“Go you stupid mutt!” He cried, flinging the closest object he had on hand towards the wolf. Tempus yelped and ran, leaving the faintest feeling of betrayal.

Seconds later, Borusa and three unknown Time Lords ran up. The Doctor sat there, shaking. “Rose, wake up,” he begged. “Wake up, please.”

“What happened?” Borusa demanded as one of his companions bent down to check Rose’s pulse.

“I don’t... I don’t know,” he protested. “She... she was talking about something and... and her eyes started glowing. I don’t...” He stopped as Borusa paled noticeably. “What is it?” he demanded. “What happened to her?”

Borusa ignored him. “Chisterii, Ashluxis, go alert Medical and find Councilmember Theros. I’ll take care of things here.”

“Take care... No! Stop! Let go of me!” he cried out as Borusa pulled him away from Rose’s unmoving body.

Borusa looked grim. “There is a reason Arkytior is treated the way she is, Theta. She’s a danger not only to herself, but to others. Your friend will be taken care of, do not worry.” He turned briefly and placed his fingertips against her temple before the Doctor could stop him. “Her shields are undamaged. That is one less thing to worry about. Now, help me bring her to Medical.”

The Doctor rushed over to her. “Don’t touch her,” he said, defensively. 

Borusa shook his head, but stepped back. “Your loyalty is a folly, boy. You’d do best to learn how to control it.”

The Doctor ignored him as he lifted Rose into his arms. She was alarmingly light. “Lead the way,” he said.

Borusa did so, muttering about ‘youth these days’ and ‘bad habits’. By the time they reached medical the Doctor’s arms were shaking, but he refused to let anyone know. He gingerly laid Rose down on the indicated bed, the sensors immediately picking up on her physical and mental state.

The medic barely glanced at her readouts. “She’s suffered a bit of psychic shock. She’ll be fine given time.” He looked at the Doctor. “You were with her, yes? We need you to tell us what happened.”

The Doctor swallowed. “I... I don’t really know. She was telling me about being an empath, about how... how it’s hard to regulate the emotions she feels from others. And then...” he hesitated. Something felt... wrong.

“Spit it out, Theta,” Borusa ordered.

“It’s the Doctor,” he snapped back. “Not Theta. Doctor.”

Unfazed, his instructor snapped right back, “Semantics.” His voice softened. “We cannot help her if we don’t know what happened.”

“I... I don’t really know,” he admitted. “She just... one moment she was fine, and the next.. her eyes started glowing, and she sounded... not herself.”

“What did she say?” Borusa asked, sharply.

“Just...” he swallowed. “Just that Time listens to no one.”

Borusa stared at him, eyes piercing. “Are you sure?”

“Certain,” he replied, meeting his gaze evenly. “That’s all she said. And then... then she passed out.”

The medic spoke. “We’ll need to keep her under observation for a day to ensure she doesn’t go into shock. If this happens again, do not hesitate to call for someone. It could be the difference between seeing your friend in class next week or seeing her grave.” With that announcement, he swept off.

Borusa was still staring at the Doctor. “I want you to report any more incidents like this. Arkytior’s mind is too unstable for contact; and, as you saw, too unstable for herself, sometimes.”

“She’s hurting,” he protested. “She can’t access her own mind, she can’t learn to control it, and she can’t block us out! She’s constantly having our emotions pour over her, and there’s nothing she can do to stop it!”

Borusa’s eyes narrowed. “She has managed to ignore it well enough thus far, and will continue to do so. The Council has decided what should be; who are you to argue?”

Though he desperately wanted to defend Rose, the Doctor held his tongue. He knew when to pick his battles. At his silence, Borusa added, “Remember, report any incidents.” He swept off.

The Doctor stayed by Rose’s bedside, watching the screen as it recorded her health. There was more going on here than they knew, and he was determined to protect her from it. Whatever happened in the gardens wouldn’t be repeated, he vowed to himself; Rose had been ostracized long enough.

He only left when the medic returned and firmly told him that visiting hours were over; however, after learning what time it was opened, he was determined to be there. But first, he had a mountain wolf to apologize too.

~*~

Tempus didn’t come at first, which worried him slightly, but after some patience and more than a few whistles the wolf pup came crawling back, belly low to the ground. The Doctor sighed and patted the wolf’s head softly. “I’m sorry, boy. But Rose and I aren’t like other time lords; they won’t hesitate to harm you or kill you. Remember the ones that Rose saved you from? That’s nothing compared to what the others will do. You have to stay hidden when someone else comes along, understand?”

The wolf whined, his tail thumping slightly, before he licked the Doctor’s hand in what he felt like was agreement. Though Tempus was more bonded with Rose, he liked the Doctor well enough, even if he didn’t always listen.

The Doctor wrestled with him for a while in apology, getting his robes filthy but not minding in the slightest. For such a small creature Tempus was strong and agile, but the Doctor didn’t go down without a fight. Eventually the young wolf pup went to hunt for his meal, and the Doctor snuck back to his rooms at the Academy to change and get the more obvious stains out.

His computer admonished him gently as he scrubbed the fabric, then told him the best way to remove the stains. He had long since figured out how to remove the program that let his teachers know the status of his entrances and exits, so they wouldn’t know the state of his attire or his insomnia. 

He used the rest of the night to work on essays and projects that he had fallen behind on, then meditated for a few hours to sort his mind out and to prevent the worry over Rose’s predicament by trying to think of a way around it. All he knew was that the Council had blocked her time senses from her and that she was forbidden telepathic contact; which pretty much prevented nearly all the schemes he thought of. 

Whatever Rose had seen in the vortex, it was dangerous, that much was clear. The council either feared it or feared Rose (though he was confused as to how anyone could think Rose could harm them; she was an empath and could feel other’s pain, especially with the part of her mind that controlled that sense locked away from her). 

He hadn’t thought of an idea before the computer informed him he had to get ready if he wanted to visit Rose before classes. Changing into a clean pair of robes and grabbing a small holovid from his desk, he raced to the medical wing and arrived just as the doors were opened.

To his delight Rose was awake, sketching on a pad that had been provided for her. She smiled when she saw him enter her room. “You came!” she said, putting the pad to the side. 

“Of course I did,” he scoffed. “Do you know how long you’ll be in here?”

“At least a day for monitoring,” Rose said, glumly. “I tried to tell them I was fine but they wouldn’t listen.”

The Doctor smiled. “I’ll be sure to drop by later so we can continue working on our projects together. Anyway, I wanted to give you this.” He pressed a small golden orb into her hand.

Rose looked at it, confused. “What does it do?”

“Lights off, please,” he told the computer and the room was instantly plunged into darkness.

The globe began to glow and hovered a few inches above her hand, four colours divided into separate sections. “Pick one,” he said.

Rose pressed on the red section and the room melted away to reveal a beautiful house surrounded by trees. Rose gasped. “Red is a place that you’ve visited,” he said. “Don’t worry, it’s slightly telepathic but non-invasive. It uses surface memories, mostly.”

“It’s home,” Rose whispered. “That’s the tree I climbed before I was inducted into the academy. My mother’s greenhouse is around that corner.”

“It’s beautiful,” he said and meant it.

Rose pressed the blue and her home disappeared to show a puzzle. “Mind games,” the Doctor said, pleased. “Just speak the answer out loud or tell it to shift what piece where. It’ll do all the work.”

The yellow section was literature and Rose was delighted when she found books that she hadn’t read. “This is all well and good, Doctor, but you don’t really need the lights off for this,” Rose pointed out.

“Just wait,” he said as his hand cupped hers, the one that was under the orb. His other hand pressed the green section.

They were immediately surrounded by stars.

Rose stared in awe. “I designed that one myself,” the Doctor said, quietly. “It’s the star chart of the sky around Gallifrey; I used to spend hours on top of Mount Cadon plotting their path. It’s my favorite one.”

“It’s beautiful,” she said. “It’s… it’s like I’m out there, travelling among them.”

He smiled slightly at her. “Yeah?”

She nodded. “Yes.”

Their gazes caught and held, and it seemed like a small electric current fizzled through them, originating where their hands touched and branching out. Eternity lived and died in her eyes, he thought whimsically, the flecks of gold seeming to shine. 

“I think…” Rose said, softly, “that you need to get to class.”

“Yeah,” he admitted, but didn’t look away. “Rose?”

“Yes?”

“I’ll see you later today.”

She smiled. “I’m counting on it.”

~*~

When the Doctor got out of classes he only made a detour to the library, arranging to have the books delivered to his room before going to the infirmary once more. Rose was reading one of his favorite manuscripts when he entered and she smiled when she saw him.

“I suppose I should be looking forward to getting my homework delivered soon,” she sighed as he started to work on his own.

“Don’t worry, I got notes for you,” he said. “Had to go to some of your other classmates to get them, but I can send them to your tablet.”

Rose shifted and picked it up from the side table. “Go ahead.”

He did so and Rose closed the manuscript she had been reading. “This device is brilliant,” she said. “Where’d you get it?”

“My father gave it to me,” he replied. “He used it when he was a child, and when I was too precocious for my own good he thought that it would help me to calm down. It only worsened my attitude, I think,” he grinned and Rose laughed. “I figured out how to add to the programming when I was seven, and added in the green and red,” he finished.

Rose tossed the orb into the air once before placing it on the nightstand. “I really appreciate you letting me borrow it. The only things here to entertain me are drawing and dry medical textbooks.”

“Those actually sound pretty interesting,” he mused, before turning his attention back to his tablet. “Unfortunately, I have four hours to write a paper on the theory of interdimensional travel.”

“Good luck,” Rose said cheerily as her tablet pinged, indicating that she had received her assignment. “Looks like I have to create a model of the ecosystem on Regnivek,” she said sourly. 

He looked at her tablet. “Oh, I did that last year. I got a C on it, but that’s because I couldn’t be bothered to to do well.”

She smirked. “That’s your default stance.”

“Well, I know that I know the material, why prove it over and over again?” He shrugged. “Besides, it’s boring. I prefer the aspects of time travel.”

Rose smiled as she expanded her tablet to start her work on the model. “Maybe that’s what you should get your degree in. Temporal mechanics.”

He considered. “It’s the closest I can get to Time travel without doing it, that’s for sure.” The Doctor sighed and slumped in the chair. “I want to go out there and see things, not be stuck here on this… on this rock!”

She leaned over and took his hand in hers, and he looked startled before realizing she was shielding. “You’ll get your chance one day,” Rose smiled.

He looked at her warily. “You aren’t going all… glowy, are you?”

Rose shook her head. “No. I just… sometimes a few Time lines escape their prison. That was one of them.” She shifted and returned to her work, pulling up a document that she needed. 

He stayed quiet, thinking about what she had said. An idea was forming and, if he did his research, he might very well find out how to give Rose’s mind back to her.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warning for mental assault (is that a thing)?

Sometimes, when he looked back on his life, the Doctor was surprised at how much time flew when he was on Gallifrey.

Though it was boring and tedious, and the days tended to repeat themselves, the Doctor would blink and months would have flown by. Rose didn’t have another ‘relapse’, and though his friendship with her strained his friendship with Koschei and his other friends, he learned how to balance the three aspects of his life- Rose, his friends, and school. Though he still got in trouble due to Koschei’s influence, he got better at getting away with it. 

He spent all his available time in the library, hunting down texts on meditation, researching on the effects of staring into the untempered schism and the Vortex. He also researched temporal mechanics and spent an entire week studying TARDIS lore, of which there was frustratingly little. 

It was several years before he had a workable idea and, by then, he had started working in the TARDIS nurseries since his studies required him to study creatures of Time. Though he was only a Junior member and was denied access to the newly-grown TARDISes, including those ready to be flown, but the ‘adolescent TARDIS’, as he referred to them, were accessible. Since they were what he wanted to get to anyway, he wasn’t worried. 

Tempus had grown to an adult and, though he still lived in the Academy gardens, he had gotten better at hiding. Though his bond with Rose was stronger, he was still quite attached to the Doctor and came when called. He tried to bring Tempus a treat whenever he visited, to the point where Rose accused him of spoiling the wolf; he faked innocence, though Rose of course knew better.

“Come on,” he urged Rose one afternoon as he tugged her along by her hand. 

Though her eyes closed, her smile was enormous. “Where are you taking me, Doctor? I swear, if this is a repeat of the Slime incident…”

“That was an accident!” he protested, but laughed. “Anyway, wait one second.” He tapped at the scanner and waited for it to identify him, then carefully entered the sequence that would allow Rose’s entrance. The sensor scanned her as well and registered her appearance, but the data flow that would have normally travelled to the main computer bank derailed to his tablet. The Doctor grinned when it scrolled across the screen and he entered the code needed for authorization. Seconds later the door slid open and he guided her into the nursery.

“Doctor, what is that singing?” Rose asked, hushed. His hearts swelled in pride. Of course she heard the TARDISes singing- she was an empath and though his meditation tips had helped her combat the worst of her condition she was still sensitive. 

“Open your eyes,” he said, squeezing her hand. She did so, hesitantly, and once her eyes adjusted she gasped.

She stepped away from him to gaze in awe at the tangle of branches above her head, standing in the middle of an alien forest and finding it beautiful. “These… these are TARDISes! But, Doctor… you shouldn’t have brought me here. Won’t you get in trouble?” she worried.

He grinned. “I found a loophole. I read the manual they gave me and it turned out, back before empaths became rare, they were the primary TARDIS caretakers. Turns out feeding TARDISes emotions helped speed their development, and they lived longer and healthier lives. So empaths are always welcome in the TARDIS nurseries; technically you have power over everyone here. But since the Council still has sway over your decisions because of the block they put on your mind…” he shrugged. “I’ve rigged the door I brought you to so that I’m the only one who knows when you enter or exit. And since this garden is interconnected, you don’t have to worry about accidentally bonding to the older or younger TARDISes. I thought, well… I thought that if you had an outlet for your abilities, it might help you clear your mind, so to speak, and control it better.”

He was startled when Rose flung her arms around him. He knew she was tactile- once she trusted him, she was physically affectionate. Her talent at sensing emotions made her less reserved to touch than her peers who were told, at a very young age, to refrain from physical contact. It had taken the Doctor a while to shake off that ingrained instinct to flinch from her touch, and while he made sure to shield whenever he initiated touch, he was still surprised when she was the one to do so.

“Thank you,” she whispered and he hugged her back. She pulled back, looking at the towering spirals and branches of coral. “How do I connect with them?”

He led her towards the closest one. “Just place your hand against the surface and initiate a link. The TARDIS coral will do the rest.”

Rose hesitated, but carefully placed her hand against the TARDIS coral. For a moment, nothing happened, then a flash of gold consumed the corals; it faded after a second, but for that moment he swore that their song had changed.

The Doctor raced to the monitoring station, hearts pounding. Never before had the TARDIS corals reacted that way. Even when his assigned mentor had shown him how to initiate a link there had been no visible reaction; Rose shouldn’t have been able to disrupt the TARDIS’s normal condition.

When he reached the station, however, the readings hadn’t dropped- in fact, they were better than normal, the contentment and connection to the vortex well into the green, when they had been hovering just above mediocre. He had been given this garden because it was unresponsive to treatment and had been regarded as a loss overall; for a moment he panicked, wondering how he was going to explain this change, then realized that it didn’t matter. His mentor would assume that this garden was a late bloomer and theorize that late development meant that when the time came they would transition better. And even if his mentor didn’t come up with the idea, the Doctor knew how to plant the seeds.

Rose stayed with the corals for nearly an hour, feeding them all the emotions she had stored, consciously or unconsciously, and he watched her carefully. When he noticed the tell-tale signs of oncoming exhaustion, he placed his hand next to hers and initiated the link.

_Rose? Rose, I know you can hear me. You need to let go now._

He watched as she twitched slightly. _Doctor? How…?_

_I’m communicating with you through the coral. You’ve been under too long. You need to disconnect before you collapse._

_But I… I feel so alive! They’re… they’re singing to me, Doctor. Can’t you hear them?_

_I can, Rose, but if you don’t leave now your mind might be lost in them. Come back. You can return later._

He felt her sigh, but she slowly broke the link. He was ready when she fell and he caught her gently, and she stared up at him with tired eyes. “You didn’t warn me on how seductive it was,” she murmured.

The Doctor chuckled. “Better for you to experience it for yourself. Then you’ll be more guarded next time.” He hesitated, then laid his fingertips on her face. “Are you all right?”

Rose nodded, her eyes widened slightly. “It’s… it’s quieter,” she said, voice hushed. “I can think now.”

He grinned. “Good. Now come on. I’ve fulfilled my shift for the day, and you need rest.”

Rose pulled away and he dropped his hand, feeling awkward; Rose, however, immediately grasped it in her own. “Thank you,” she said.

“You’re welcome,” he said sincerely. “Now come on. I have to meet Koschei so we can carry out our mission.”

She smiled. “Who’s the target?”

He winked. “Can’t tell you that,” he said cheerily. “And by the time you find out I would have cleared my name and pinned it on someone else. Like Drax.”

“Actually, could you frame Mariax?” Rose asked. “He… well, he tried a psychic attack,” she admitted, quietly.

The Doctor froze, then turned to her, gaze dark. “Rose, you should have reported him.”

She shook her head. “I threw him out, Doctor. Your lessons on shields have helped. But this wasn’t the first time he tried. I think…” she hesitated. “His family is trying to find a suitable match. And even though I’m below him in station, he… well, he wants to use that to his advantage. He thinks I’m a weaker mind.”

Fury rose within him but he tamped him down. “Don’t worry. I’ll make sure Mariax never touches you again. I wish Tempus could stay with you. I feel better when you have someone to look after you.”

Rose stiffened. “I can look after myself!” she snapped. “I don’t need a bodyguard!”

He held up his free hand. “I know, Rose. But with most of your mind hidden from you, you are more vulnerable than most. And I swear, I’m trying to find a way around it, but…” he sighed. “I just… I like you, Rose. And the fact that people like Mariax are trying to take advantage of you… I don’t like it.”

“I know,” she said, quietly. “I just… I don’t like being defenceless.”

He hugged her tightly for a moment before releasing her. “Mariax won’t bother you again,” he vowed.

Rose simply nodded, but from where their hands were intertwined, he could sense her gratitude.

~*~

It was months after that when he finally got his wish.

The Doctor was visiting Tempus in the garden, the wolf soaking in the sunlight as the Doctor ran a scanner over him; normally he would have been encouraged to use the wolves at the zoo, but Tempus was willing and, since he wasn’t in captivity, was providing more accurate readings. The Doctor had even fitted him with a small sensor that would record his vitals and thought patterns; he had a similar devices running on the captive wolves to compare the data, and if Tempus’s thought patterns were different from those of the captive wolves due to his bond with the Doctor and Rose, he would gladly scrap them and take the docked points if the need arose.

He was going over the data that the sensor had collected when Tempus suddenly moved, hackles raised. The Doctor looked at him in confusion; he couldn’t sense anyone approaching and these parts of the gardens weren’t frequented.

So it was a bit of a surprise when Tempus shot off towards the Academy.

The Doctor yelped and chased after him, no match for the four-legged animal, but able to stay within sight. He passed several startled Time Lords and a few angry guards, but when he heard the scream up ahead and Tempus’ angry growls, his blood ran cold and he found a burst of speed he didn’t know he possessed. 

He barrelled into a private room where Rose was collapsed near a sofa, tears streaking her face as she clung to the arm rest. Tempus had cornered a male, snarling at him; there was a rapidly developing bruise on the man’s face, where Tempus had knocked him into something. Thankfully, Tempus had not in any other way hurt him.

The Doctor rushed over to Rose. “What happened?” he demanded frantically, as he helped Rose up. She clung to him, sobbing, and he levelled a glare at the other man. “What did you do to her?” He raged.

Three guards barrelled into the room, taking in the situation quickly. “Get the wolf,” the leader ordered.

“NO!” the Doctor roared, surprising everyone. “Tempus, stand down,” he ordered and the wolf immediately stopped growling and moved aside, though his fur was still raised.

The guards looked surprised and one turned to the Doctor. “You bonded with a mountain wolf?” he demanded.

“He was being tortured as a pup when I rescued him,” the Doctor said flatly. “At the time I just saw a creature in pain. I didn’t expect it to forge a bond.”

The young man Tempus had cornered had backed away warily. “You need to put that creature down!” he babbled. “I wasn’t doing anything wrong, it went berserk and attacked me! It’s rabid!”

The guard frowned. “Where are your wounds?”

“What?” 

“Your wounds. If the wolf attacked, you would be injured. And yet you are not bleeding.” He turned to the Doctor. “Did you see what happened?”

He shook his head. “I was in the gardens doing research, when Tempus suddenly bolted. When I got here, Rose- pardon, Arkytior- was collapsed on the ground crying, and Tempus had him cornered.”

The guard turned back to the man. “What is your name?”

“Mariax,” he replied and the Doctor stiffened.

“You were the one who tried to force a bond on Rose,” he growled and Rose shuddered against him as he carefully disentangled himself from her. “How dare you! Once wasn’t enough? You break one of our laws and decide to come back for seconds? You were lucky that Tempus didn’t see you as more of a threat,” he spat.

“Theta Sigma, you will stand down,” one of the guards ordered and though he halted in his forward movement his glare did not leave Mariax’s face.

“Doctor,” Rose choked out and he reluctantly turned to face her. At the look on her face he immediately went back over to her, carefully shielding so that when she latched back onto him she wouldn’t pick up on his emotions.

The guards looked grave. “Mariax. Is this true?”

Mariax looked defiant, but the Doctor could see the panic in his eyes. “He’s lying! I never tried to force a bond. I’ve agreed to be married after I graduate to a woman who will improve my family’s relations; why should I waste my time on a half-breed?”

Tempus growled and Mariax flinched.

“She is not a half-breed,” the Doctor said angrily. “She is just as Gallifreyan as any of us, and just because her mother cannot regenerate doesn’t mean anything. Plenty of Time Lord children lose the ability to regenerate; your mother is one of them! Are you saying you’re a half-breed?”

The guards had been conferring amongst themselves and one finally approached Rose. “We are going to have to use a collector to view the chain of events. None of you will re-live the experience; it will be non-invasive scan on your recent memories and you will not even realize it is there. Follow us; and Theta Sigma, make sure that your… pet… doesn’t cause trouble.”

“He won’t,” the Doctor promised, and after a mental command at Tempus to stay by his side he helped Rose up and followed the guards. They, by unspoken agreement, surrounded Mariax to make certain he cooperated. 

Within moments they had been ushered inside a small room and hooked up to some devices, and minutes later they were released to wait in separate rooms. Rose had Tempus, so at least she wasn’t alone; the Doctor shuddered at the thought that if they had been further into the gardens, or if they hadn’t saved Tempus that day…

He stopped that line of thought and focused on meditating. The last thing Rose needed right now was for him to be out of control.

Eventually the door opened and the Doctor was startled to see that it was his older brother. “You’ve really gotten yourself in the middle of something now, Theta,” Braxiatel said, sighing.

The Doctor scowled. “That’s not my name.”

He smiled slightly. “Maybe not, but until you graduate it is. Now.” He sat down across from him. “The Council isn’t too happy with you.”

“They never are,” the Doctor muttered.

“Be that as it may,” Braxiatel replied, “Arkytior is a sensitive subject. And the fact that you two are so… familiar… raises a lot of unnecessary concern, in my opinion, but nevertheless they are… let’s say, worried.”

The Doctor frowned. “I don’t understand. She’s a friend. And really, it’s their fault. Her mind is hidden from her; of course she’s vulnerable! I’ve been helping her as much I can, Brax, but there’s only so much I can do!”

Braxiatel nodded. “And she’s grown much stronger thanks to you, which is why she was able to fend off Mariax.” At the Doctor’s expression he looked solemn. “He’s being held as we speak. What he did… he’s going to regret it for a long time.”

“Good,” the Doctor growled.

“But I’m getting side-tracked. I’m here to warn you, Theta. You need to watch yourself. The Council is already worried about what might happen if Arkytior accesses her own mind. I know what you think, but she really is dangerous if she cannot control herself. What she saw in the Vortex… it’s better kept asleep.”

The Doctor blinked. “You speak as though it’s alive.”

“The Vortex is not something to be trifled with, Theta,” Braxiatel warned. “I know that it’s what you want to study, but be careful. There’s a reason that we are told from a young age to avoid it. Arkytior’s mind is blocked for a reason, but when she gets old enough they are going to give her more access to her temporal abilities. Do not try to rush the process or you might end up killing her.”

“I won’t hurt her,” he said, flatly.

Braxiatel nodded. “I know you won’t.” He rose and headed out the door. “You are free to go, little brother. Remember what I said.”

The Doctor followed after him, immediately going to where Rose and Tempus were waiting. “Are you okay?” he asked in concern.

Rose nodded. “I’m allowed to keep Tempus near me in case something like this happens again,” she said. “Even though I threw him out of my mind there are stronger telepaths than Mariax. And since Tempus didn’t hurt him other than knock him away from me, it was decided that he wasn’t as rabid as Mariax thought,” she said.

“Well I knew that,” he scoffed, then knelt down to hug the mountain wolf, sending him gratitude and praise for defending Rose. The wolf’s tail thumped the ground in acknowledgement. The Doctor looked up at Rose. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

She swallowed. “Not really. But I will be.”

The Doctor took her hand. “Come on. You can sleep it off in my room. I don’t want you out of my sight.”

Rose nodded and followed after him willingly. Tempus stuck close to her side and, though they gathered a few odd looks, they didn’t mind.

As Rose fell asleep on his bed, the Doctor made a makeshift nest of blankets for Tempus who immediately curled up in them, eyes alert and watching the Doctor as he moved about the room, ensuring it was secure. It wasn’t against the rules to have someone in the room with you- it was conducive to studying, after all, if the room made them comfortable- but he was being paranoid and strengthened the psychic dampeners he had created. Her mind had already suffered enough and her guards were down; she didn’t need more emotions pouring into her unprotected mind.

“One day, Tempus, I’m going to figure out how to heal her,” he said as he settled down on the floor to work on his project. “Just you wait.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rose deals with the after-effects of Mariax's invasion, and the Doctor looks for ways to help.  
> Thanks to Silver for the beta!

It took weeks before Rose was ready to talk about what Mariax did to her and, even then, it was when they were surrounded by the TARDIS corals; Rose had gotten better at disconnecting when she began to feel drained, but today she had pushed herself too far and the Doctor had to forcefully sever the connection. Tempus was whining in distress as he pawed at her shaking form.

“Don’t do that!” he scolded. “Rose, you could die!”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry… I had to forget, I thought….” She pressed her head to her shoulder. “He broke my mind wide open, Doctor. If Tempus hadn’t forced him off… I was overwhelmed with my own mind. Suddenly I could feel Time like everyone else could, and it swallowed me, and I was lost. He almost succeeded.”

The Doctor clutched at her. “But the shields… the Council should have prevented that!”

“Bonds are different,” she said quietly. “They aren’t… the shields prevent me from escaping, not from people getting in. Mariax knew that, I think. And when he forced through he wasn’t careful. He shattered them. Your brother rebuilt the shields, but… I can still feel him, Doctor. I can still remember him forcing his way into my mind.”

He closed his eyes. “Oh, Rose. I’m so sorry. I thought that I had warned him not to touch you. Clearly it wasn’t enough. I…” he hesitated. “I can teach you how to suppress it, so that you can access it one day when you’re ready. You won’t forget it, but… it won’t be at the forefront of your mind anymore.”

“Can you?” Rose whispered. “I don’t want to think about it.”

He nodded. “Yeah. Just… it might be difficult at first. But whatever you do, don’t give up.”

Rose nodded and he guided her through the process. It would be easier if he was in her mind helping her, but he knew that suggesting it would only make things worse. Rose was clearly struggling, agony crossing her features as she shoved the memory into the back of her mind; but eventually she finished and looked at him wearily.

“Let’s get you back to your room,” he said. 

Rose hesitated outside of her door when they got there, Tempus automatically curling up in the bed Rose had made for him. “Thank you.” She said. “You brother… he told me that you don’t make friends with just anyone. And I’m… well, you know.” She shrugged.

He placed his hands on her shoulder. “You’re…. fantastic, Rose. It took me a while to realize it, but you’re compassionate, brave, fierce, and… well, I just know that if they took the time to know you, everyone would know just how wonderful you are. You feel so much, Rose. Not just because of your empathy, but because you wear your hearts on your sleeve. You’ve made me a better person simply by being in my life.”

She swallowed. “You… you really think so?”

He hugged her. “I know so. Now get some sleep.”

Rose nodded, then pressed a kiss to his cheek before darting into her room. Stunned, the Doctor stood there, then grinned as his fingers pressed against the spot she had kissed. Maybe, just maybe, he wasn’t alone in this. Whatever it was.

~*~

The Doctor arrived at her room bright and early, claiming that they were going on ‘an adventure’. Tempus was told to stay in her room since he would be too noticeable and though Rose felt sorry for leaving him behind, curiosity over what the Doctor had planned won out.

He brought her to an empty corridor and, after a quick look around, pressed a hand to the wall, revealing a disused air vent. He ushered her in and then slid in behind her, reactivating the perception filter. “Take the first right,” he said and Rose obligingly began crawling forward. 

She found herself at a dead end, but before she could ask what was happening the Doctor squirmed beneath her and they shuffled each other a bit so that Rose was lying half on top of him. He grinned and placed his hand in front of him, and a vent immediately shimmered into existence beneath them. Rose tensed, but realized that no one could see them- she didn’t know if the perception filter was still intact on the other side or if no one had bothered to look up, but Rose wasn’t really keen on finding out.

They were looking down on some sort of meeting; Rose swallowed when she realized that it was among Council members, specifically those who monitored her shields and academics. The Doctor didn’t seem worried, though, so Rose slowly relaxed. 

Carefully, he wiggled his hand into his pocket and pulled out a small black circle. He pressed his fingers to his lips and Rose nodded, and he aimed and lobbed the circle at the floor. They waited for a tense moment but no one seemed to notice, and the circle flickered and camouflaged itself.

Seconds later, the sound of a flubble in heat sounded through the room.

Rose pressed her face against the Doctor’s back to muffle her laughter as the assembled Time Lords looked around in confusion. A few of them looked under the table with a sour expression and only when one of them said they should retire to a different room did the Doctor switch the device off.

The Council members looked around in confusion before getting back to business, but moments later, before anything could be accomplished, the device was switched back on. 

Aggravated, they once more started to search for the source of the noise, but the Doctor shut it off again quickly. This continued for nearly an hour before they left the room, and only when the door closed did the Doctor and Rose burst out laughing.

“Did you see the one who banged his head on the table when I shut if off?” the Doctor gasped.

Rose giggled. “I’ve never seen Anvilae turn that shade of red before! Maybe if he was like that all the time those robes would actually look good on him!”

“I was surprised they were able to fit under the table with their headdresses. Who wears those things outside of formal events?”

“Stuffy councilmembers, clearly,” Rose replied, fully relaxed as she lay half-on and half-off him. The Doctor had rolled onto his back after the room had been vacated, and her eyes were shining from excitement and joy. It was a complete turnaround from they way she had been for the past week, and before his mind could talk him out of it he leaned up and quickly pressed his lips to hers.

Time seemed to stand still and, since he was living on a planet that lived and breathed Time, the Doctor thought that everything had simply gone quiet. Rose stared at him with wide eyes, before she hesitantly pressed back a little. It wasn’t until he reached up one hand to tangle his fingers in her hair that she panicked.

Close as they were and with the Doctor not shielding due to surprise and wonder, he could feel the moment she panicked. Not because she didn’t want to continue- but because she did. The intensity of her reactions surprised and scared her, since she still believed herself tainted.

Rose scrambled away from him, hurrying the best she could towards the entrance. Reluctantly the Doctor followed, refusing to feel ashamed of what he did, even if he was sorry about when and where. The entire night he had daydreamed about kissing her in the gardens, perhaps by the pond where they had taken care of Tempus; not in some disused ventilation shaft. 

“Rose-” he began, but she interrupted him.

“I can’t, Doctor. I don’t know how to control myself, I… what if I hurt you next time that… that thing takes over?” she said, wrapping her arms around herself. “I nearly regenerated two fully-grown Time Lords. I can’t… if I hurt you…”

He pulled her into a fierce hug. “You won’t, Rose. I trust you. Whatever that thing is I know it’s only trying to keep you safe. And I’ve been researching ways for you to remove those shields and not have your talents overwhelm you.”

She didn’t meet his eyes. “We can’t talk here.”

The Doctor followed her back to her room and it wasn’t until they were sitting on the floor, Tempus’s head in Rose’s lap, that she began to speak.

“When I woke up after staring into the schism, I was surrounded by the Time Lords you saw in that room. They informed me that there had been an accident during my initiation, that I had seen something dangerous within the Vortex and that thing had attacked the Time Lords standing guard and lodged itself into my mind because I was the closest host. They wiped the minds of my classmates so that they wouldn’t remember it, and that the shields were placed so that the thing inside me can’t escape.” Rose looked up at him. “That’s why, Doctor. That’s why I can’t get close to anyone. Because I’m not alone in my head.”

She was surprised to see that he looked furious. “That’s preposterous,” he exclaimed. “Everyone knows that the only things that can survive the Vortex is TARDISes. And if they lied about that, what else are they willing to lie about? I’ve crossed my own time stream and they said it couldn’t be done. Well, I think that when you looked into the Vortex, it unlocked your real potential, Rose. And it frightened those dusty old Council members that someone so young was so powerful. They fear you, Rose, fear what you are capable of if you learned to wield that talent. They’re crippling you!”

“I don’t have a choice!” Rose said, suspiciously close to shouting. “My family is already shunned by most of the people in high society, and the only reason they’re still allowed in the City is because of me. I have to stay in the Council’s good graces or my family can be banished from their home!” 

Rose hadn’t realized she had slipped into Old High Gallifreyan; it was only the Doctor’s innate talent at languages and the fact that he had studied it in his spare time since he was younger out of a sense of curiosity that he understood what she said. He replied in the same language. “They don’t control you, Rose. And none of the laws on Gallifrey say that the Council can banish a family based on their child. If it were true my family would have been gone long ago. I used to think that they knew everything; but the more I get to know you, the more I understand your situation, the more I realize that the Council only looks out for itself.” He placed a hand on her shoulder. “Time waits for no one, Rose. Maybe instead of doing what everyone tells you to do, you should forge your own path.” He squeezed her shoulder. “I’ll wait. For however long it takes. But know that I’m always here, Rose.” 

He stood and moved to the door. Rose didn’t reply, but as he exited the room he heard a soft, “Doctor?” 

He turned and saw Rose looking at him. “Be patient.”

“Patience isn’t my strong suit, but I’ll do my best,” he replied cheekily and was rewarded with a smile.


	5. Chapter 5

Rose hurried through the hallways of the Academy as fast as she could while maintaining the proper dignity, Tempus gliding along beside her. Even now, nearly a century later, she still gathered odd stares from those who didn’t know her story.

Koschei was waiting for her outside the door. “About time you came,” he smirked. “How’s the wolf?”

“Well, thanks,” Rose replied. Though she liked Koschei when the Doctor finally introduced him, he had always been slightly resentful towards her. His duo with the Doctor had become a trio after he invited Rose along and Rose had become the Doctor’s default project partner when they had class- although he was rather impressed with their system of note passing. Rose had taught him Old High Gallifreyan so that whenever a teacher made them read the notes aloud no one could understand what they were saying. What made the joke better was that they were either making fun of the instructor or the class in general and no one knew. After that they had bonded over a few things, but Rose knew she liked Koschei far more than Koschei liked her. “I haven’t missed anything, have I?” she asked.

“Hasn’t even started,” he replied as they entered the room together. “I was just told to wait for you so that I can show you where to sit.”

Rose eyed him. “Aren’t you graduating today as well?”

“Snuck away,” Koschei replied. “It’s nothing but boring lectures on how to conduct ourselves now that we’re no longer children. Theta is working on a surprise for the finale.” 

She rolled her eyes fondly. “Just promise me that whatever it is won’t stain. I bought these robes yesterday.”

“I promise. And you look very nice in them,” he said, attempting to be solicitous. 

Rose smiled and thanked him, and he immediately darted away to help the Doctor with his plans. Rose settled down and, after looking at how close she was to the stage, resigned herself to the fact that she might end up slightly charred or wet. At least the Doctor was graduating; he had failed his first attempt and faced Rose’s wrath, and had meekly shown up the next day for a re-take. He refused to tell her his score, but Rose had made sure to congratulate him with a flask of wine made from her father’s vineyard. They had both gotten rather drunk and ended up swinging from the chandelier in his bedroom. His father had not been pleased.

Rose hadn’t been over to his family home often; during breaks from the Academy he typically visited Rose at hers, chasing her and Tempus or being chased through the groves and swimming in the lake. Even though her mother terrified him, he liked spending time with Rose’s father, and had even helped him with one of his inventions; the Doctor was now a frequent correspondent, since his studies in temporal mechanics helped him see things in a different light as well as anticipate how Gallifrey’s connection to Time might affect the device.

The Doctor’s father, however, never approved of Rose. She wasn’t sure if it was because of her family or because she encouraged the Doctor’s rebellious behavior; either way the tepid welcome of his family and the cold, impersonal house was never their favorite place to spend time.

Rose daydreamed about her work as the boring ceremony was performed. She was currently a caretaker for the museum and, once she graduated, she was eligible for a survey team. The list wasn’t very long, but survey teams were rare; if she worked hard she was able to advance up the list, and it had been decades since the last time she was off-planet for a research mission. If she was lucky she could become an official curator or even a teacher, both of which were equally appealing.

Despite being lost in thought she didn’t miss the Doctor’s appearance nor the few acquaintances she had met through him. She even applauded enthusiastically for Koschei, who sent her a smirk. Rose grinned back with a challenging gleam in her eyes, declaring that she was ready for whatever they had planned.

Only when the President finished the closing speech did Rose notice the suspicious flickers around the lights. Then suddenly the perception filter flipped off, and a net filled with confetti was revealed and promptly dunked on the audience and graduates alike.

Rose laughed, Tempus barking irritably as he snatched the paper out of the air in curiosity and found that they didn’t taste as good as he thought. He whined as he tried to remove the paper from his mouth and Rose saw the Doctor and Koschei howling with laughter, going unnoticed by the general confusion and annoyance that everyone else was exhibiting.

The graduates were dismissed as the President began barking orders for someone to clean everything up and to find out the culprits- Rose grinned when she saw that the Doctor and Koschei were already gone, no doubt fleeing as soon as they were allowed. Tempus led her directly to the Doctor, who spun her around after Rose launched herself at him, hugging him tightly.

“That was amazing! The look on the President’s face!” She laughed. “I thought he was going to regenerate right then and there!”

“It was our last chance to do something without consequences, so we wanted to go big,” he chuckled.

Rose grinned at him. “I’ll need your help when I graduate, you know.”

“Oh don’t worry, yours will put ours to shame,” he promised.

Her hearts warm from the way his arms were still wrapped around her, Rose quickly lifted up and kissed him. She sensed his surprise before he was suddenly kissing her back clumsily, breaking away from her after a moment. “Wait… Rose, what?”

“Congratulations,” she said. “And… I think I’m doing waiting.”

She didn’t need her ability to see that he was nearly vibrating with hope. “You sure?”

“More than,” Rose replied.

He whooped and swung her around again, ignoring the scandalized looks of the Time Lords around them. “That’s the best news all day!”

Koschei walked up to them, his smile slightly strained. “The guards are on their way over here. Seems like we’re the prime suspects.”

The Doctor grinned. “Rose?”

She didn’t reply, simply gripped his hand and ran.

~*~

Braxiatel had always looked after his little brother.

He knew Theta resented it, since he was of the mind that he was capable of taking care of himself. Braxiatel knew better, of course. He had mellowed out slightly ever since Rose, aware on some level that she didn’t deserve to deal with the type of trouble he used to get into. He also had some fanciful notion of being her knight in shining armour, which would have normally concerned Braxiatel. In this case, however, he was relieved. Theta wanting to impress Rose meant that he would stay out of trouble or at least bend the rules instead of breaking them. But now he couldn’t help but pity his brother.

Braxiatel had been just as surprised as his father when Theta appeared before them and asked for their permission so he could court Rose. Their father was having a difficult time in securing a proper match for Theta, not that he would admit that, but the worrisome girl from the odd family was never even a thought in their minds. She was from a lesser known house and her families didn’t have many strong political ties. It would be far more advantageous for Rose to marry Theta and if Braxiatel didn’t know better he would have suspected manipulation.

But Rose was honest and Braxiatel knew her affections were genuine. He just hadn’t realized until now that Theta’s were as well.

Their father finally spoke. “And just why should I grant you permission? Her family will do nothing to better ours.”

“And that’s where you’re wrong,” Theta said and Braxiatel winced slightly. Undaunted his brother continued. “Peteran’s inventions have made him richer than he likes to display. Their wealth is larger than ours, dad, and I’ve been in correspondence with him and his colleagues for years now. Being allied with them gives us the support of the lesser acknowledged crafts, which far outnumber the specialized ones. If someone were to organize them they could outvote any of your allies, father.”

Braxiatel kept his voice calm. “No one in the Council will listen to them, Theta.”

“They have to,” he replied. “You know the laws, Brax. If we bring up Article Fourteen, Section-”

“This isn’t a political science class,” their father interrupted. 

Theta bowed slightly. “I apologize. The fact of the matter, father, is that you know as well as I that you will be hard-pressed to find a house willing to ally themselves through me. And it’s my fault, but unless you want me to ruin our reputation further by refusing an engagement, I’m going to have to insist on it bring Rose.”

His brother was either mad or a genius; Braxiatel couldn’t decided which. “Do you think her father will agree?” he asked.

Theta grinned. “Already asked him. He said we’ve been courting for years, but it was nice to finally get the confirmation. Her mother gave me some banana muffins before I left.”

Their father sighed. “Alright. You have my permission. Not like I have a choice in the matter.”

“I would have courted her anyway,” Theta said and their father nodded wearily.

Once he left, Braxiatel looked at his father. “I know what you’re thinking, but Arkytior is the most suitable match. She tempers his madness and he supports her brilliance. And now that he has her and her family to impress he won’t get into trouble.”

“At least until they get married,” his father sighed. “How did your meeting with Reylivanna go?”

Outside, the Doctor finally stopped eavesdropping and raced to his room, pulling up the holo vid immediately. Rose answered the call in moments, grinning. “You just left! Missed me already?”

“After seeing you every day?” he replied. “Of course I do. Want to meet me in the nurseries tomorrow?”

“Which garden?”

“Seven.”

“I’ll be there. Tempus says hello, by the way.”

The Doctor laughed as the wolf nosed his way into the holo vid. “Hello, Tempus. I’ll see you soon.” After talking for another hour, Rose had to leave and he disconnected, still excited even though he missed her.

He couldn’t wait to show Rose just how much she meant to him.

~*~

Rose had known the Doctor was planning something. He was being more sneaky than usual and, even when she was with him, he seemed distracted. She knew his research was frustrating, but it hadn’t elicited this response from him. Usually when he was wrapped up in a project he was consumed with it, and Rose could only make sure he ate and got enough sleep.

After she got off work Rose headed to the TARDIS nursery, using the same code he had given her all those decades before. She was a bit confused as to why he asked her join him; she didn’t have a need to unload as much since the Doctor had taught her how to build up her own shields and protect herself from the emotions around her. Rose could still drop them enough to sense them if she needed, but for the most part she was happy to ignore it.

Therefore, she was rather surprised to see him fidgeting nervously by a picnic. He was wearing his everyday attire, the formal robes and collar exchanged for the more sedate version. Rose grinned- she knew the Doctor hated the collars, and wasn’t surprised to see that he hadn’t bothered to wear it, even if it barely came high enough to reach the bottom of his ears. 

“There are better spots to picnic, you know,” Rose commented as she took his hand and squeezed it. “Like Lake Abydos or the River Lethe.”

He shrugged and sat, digging through the carrier. “This was more convenient, and besides,” he grinned, “the TARDIS song is better.”

Rose had to conceded the point and Tempus was left to wander through the garden. Ever since his success with his first TARDIS garden the Doctor had been given charge of three more and, with Rose’s help, they were all healthy and thriving. 

“How’s your work at the museum going?” the Doctor asked.

She brightened. “It’s brilliant. I’ve started cataloguing artefacts and manuscripts that the survey team brought back, and my supervisor told me that if I do well on my final exams I could get boosted up on the list to go on the next one. One of my classmates, Romana, is working in the Bureau of Ancient Records, and we collaborate a lot when some of the things I catalogue are referenced in the scrolls. I’m not really interested in laws, but some of the scrolls describe early Gallifreyan history and it’s interesting to read about.”

“Really?” he asked, surprised. “I thought there weren’t any records dating pre-Rassilon.”

Rose smirked. “Not officially. Romana found them and hid them. I’ve been copying them down in case they go missing again.”

“That’s my girl,” he said, fondly, and Rose felt herself blushing from the look in his eyes.

To say she wasn’t attracted to him would by lying. He had gorgeous blue eyes and jet black hair, which covered his ears in an attempt to rebel against the typical severe hairstyles favoured by the other Time Lords. Rose had ruffled it on more than one occasion, hoping he wouldn’t discover her ulterior motives. Sometimes she wondered if he felt the same, then told herself that it wasn’t likely- after all, his family was of higher prominence, and they weren’t likely to approve of a match with hers.

Rose talked about her studies as the Doctor described his work with temporal mechanics and how he had once again failed his test at flying a TARDIS- it wasn’t because he couldn’t fly it, but rather because he didn’t want to fly in the way his instructor told him to. While Time Lords saw TARDISes as machines, the Doctor saw it as a living being, and handled it as such. 

When they were done with the meal, they leaned against one of the corals, hands tangled loosely together as they watched Tempus chew on the meat the Doctor had smuggled in. “The picnic wasn’t the reason I asked you here,” he finally said.

Rose looked at him in surprise. “Really?”

“No.” He looked at her, taking both her hands in his. “Rose, may I court you?”

She stared at him. “What?”

“I want to court you,” he said, determined. “And while I can’t make my intentions formal until you graduate, I want you to know where I stand.”

She felt dizzy. Dizzy and elated and stunned disbelief. “I always hoped… but however did you get your father’s permission!”

He grinned smugly. “Haven’t you noticed, Rose? I can be very, very stubborn when I want to be.” And, because he couldn’t resist, he leaned forward and kissed her.

Rose responded automatically, having grown used to his kisses ever since she had initiated the relationship after his graduation. They had tapered off after break was over, since they had been unable to see each other as much and their lives had become busy once more.

“How long until graduation?” He gasped, when even his respiratory bypass ran out.

She giggled and cuddled against him. “Ten more years.”


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Note the rating change.  
> There's a bit of plot towards the beginning, but the end is pretty much all smut. You can skip it without missing much.

Her first survey trip wasn’t as exciting as she thought, but Rose was eager to leave Gallifrey. As a Junior Archiver she was only allowed to handle equipment and not the actual items, but it was the first step at becoming a regular on the missions. 

The mission leader, Thurlianocophanlo, had landed them on a large asteroid in a small cluster of rocks that had once been a planet- the inhabitants had ripped it apart during a nuclear war and, while some fragments were large enough to sustain an atmosphere and population, most were uninhabitable. However, there were still artefacts and shards of the once thriving people, and that was what they were there to collect.

Rose remained on board since they didn’t have an environmental suit for her, watching through the view screen as they recovered what they were after. It was slightly boring, but she amused herself with thoughts of graduation and what would happen after.

She smiled. She couldn’t help it- the fact that the Doctor had a bevy of others to ally himself with, but he had chosen her, despite her background, despite her political standing. And though a few families had approached her father about making ties even before the Doctor did, he had turned them down, knowing full where his daughter’s hearts lay even before she was willing to admit it. 

A Gallifreyan courtship took years, if not decades. There were formalities to adhere to and steps to take. Then there was the recognition process and approval by the Council, and the marriage ceremony lasted for days, assuming they got there first. Still, Rose was optimistic. They were good at their careers and they had so far taken the proper steps, and the Council couldn’t contest their marriage.

There was no doubt in Rose’s mind that she and the Doctor would one day end up married. When two people started a Gallifreyan courtship, very rarely did they break it off; Rose only knew of three circumstances, where one of the partners had regenerated into an unstable life, and two where they had failed to do the required formalities. Though no one was brave (or too proud) enough to call it an engagement, it was very similar.

The survey team returned a few hours later, and Rose operated the systems so that the suits and artefacts were clear of any lingering radiation and contaminants. Rose helped them store the artefacts they had collected and helped pilot the TARDIS back to Gallifrey. 

She was organizing the new collection and placing them in their appropriate sections when her advisor let her know that she had a visitor. Curious, Rose left the room, only to find Braxiatel waiting for her.

“Hello, Arkytior,” he asked, as she entered. “May we take a walk?”

Rose looked at her superiors who nodded and she followed after him reluctantly, keeping her face neutral. She wasn’t sure what he wanted, but she had a pretty good guess.

“Theta told me that you met in the gardens,” he said as they walked through the hallways.

She nodded, glancing at Tempus. “I was rescuing Tempus from a group of my classmates. The Doctor helped me take care of him afterwards.”

Braxiatel nodded and Rose noticed he had led her to the gardens; it was a section she hadn’t frequented before, and she was surprised at the all the different species of rose.

“My brother is taken with you,” he continued. “I knew when he met you that it could be his downfall or his salvation, and I’m quite relieved that you’ve managed to tame him, as well as can be expected.” Braxiatel stopped to admire a bush of bright golden roses- the ones that Rose herself was named for. “My brother has a wanderlust ingrained in his very being. I’m afraid I nurtured it more than was practical before he came of age, but he has a way of winning over even the most hardened of souls.” 

Rose looked at him. “I already know all of that,” she replied. “It’s what brought us together in the first place, really- he took offence to the fact I wasn’t overly impressed with him at first.” She shrugged. “It was his genuine care and desire to help that made me stick around, though.”

“I just thought I should warn you,” Braxiatel said. He examined the rose bush once more. “The gardeners have grown concerned about the growth of the bushes and are considering pruning the flowers,” he mused to himself. “Even removing them if the growth isn’t curtailed.” He shook his head. “Anyway, I must return to my duties. Pleasure seeing you today, Arkytior.”

She watched him go, worried about his hidden message. The Council clearly thought she was a threat- whether it was because of her growing in strength or her courtship with the Doctor she didn’t know.

Tempus butted his head against her hip worriedly and Rose petted him absently. “Go find the Doctor, bring him back to my room, alright?” When the wolf hesitated Rose knelt and hugged him. “I’ll be fine. I’ve been learning Venusian Aikido, and that’s more than can be said for the Time Lords I know. Go get him. I promise I’ll be fine.”

Since Braxiatel never gave a time for their return, Rose didn’t bother with going back to work. She hurried to the room the Academy provided for her, well away from Archives and people she worked with. When the Doctor finally arrived she was pacing in her room, worry flowing off of her in waves. 

“What happened?” he asked, pulling her into a hug.

Some years previously the Doctor had fixed her room so that the monitors couldn’t be used to spy on her; much like his old room, which he fixed before moving out, the sensors merely recorded when someone entered and exited and nothing else. Therefore Rose had no qualms in repeating what Braxiatel had said. 

The Doctor’s eyes grew dark after Rose recounted his words. “It’s a good thing he warned you. But I’m not going to let them dictate my life.”

“It’s not your life, Doctor, it’s mine,” she replied, voice wavering slightly. “He was warning me. I’ve always known the Council considered me a threat, but today made it clear.” Rose leaned into him, clutching at his robe. “I don’t know what to do, Doctor. Just when I’m starting to live my life, they’re threatening to take it away.”

“I won’t let them,” he said, fiercely. “You hear me, Rose? I promise to protect you and I always will. We’ll figure this out. We will.”

She moved to pull him into a deep kiss, one hand gripping his hair and the other his shoulder. He reacted immediately, pulling him towards her and backing her towards the nearest piece of furniture- her bed. They nearly tripped over Tempus, who growled slightly before moving to the other side of the room in a huff.

They didn’t notice, since Rose’s hand was now on the Doctor’s bum and he was trying to figure out what to do with his hands. She tripped when she hit the edge of the bed and they went sprawling, their heads hitting each other painfully before they situated themselves, Rose reclined on the bed and the Doctor stretched out beside her, reclaiming her mouth as one hand curled around her waist. He could smell the hormones she was releasing, and knew where this would inevitably lead if he didn’t stop her.

“Rose,” he gasped as he pulled away. “Rose, we need to stop.”

She shook her head fiercely. “I don’t want to. Please, Doctor. I don’t… I don’t want to live in fear of what the Council might do. For decades I’ve restrained myself and kept in the shadows. I don’t… I don’t want them controlling me.”

“Rose, I don’t… I don’t know what I’m doing,” he mumbled, fighting the urge to blush. “I want this with you, I want _everything_ with you… but what if I… what if we…” 

Rose fiddled with her sleeve nervously. “I… I think I know the mechanics. I mean, I know the differences in anatomy and I… put two and two together…” She blushed as he laughed. “I didn’t mean it like that!”

“I know.” He leaned his forehead against hers. “Are you sure?”

She nodded, eyes locked with his.

He helped her off the bed and, after a moments hesitation, he stepped forward to awkwardly fiddle with her robes. Rose removed his collar and overrobe, both of them breaking apart to discard the clothing. She eventually stepped forward to remove the sash about his waist, and she could feel his muscles quivering slightly as her fingers brushed against his stomach. She realized he must have been feeling the same as her- nervous but excited, yet jumping at every odd noise in the fear of being discovered. 

After a few awkward fumbles they eventually disrobed themselves, standing naked in her room and unsure of how to proceed. She knew that the next step was to get in bed, but… she shifted from one foot to the other. 

The Doctor, on the other hand, looked like someone had punched him in the gut. “You look… you’re beautiful, Rose,” he whispered. “Like Time incarnate.”

She blushed and stepped forwards towards him, placing her hands over his chest, feeling his hearts beating frantically. “I never thought I’d get to have this,” she said. “Not this, specifically, but… I always thought I’d be alone.”

His hands covered hers. “You’ll never be alone again,” he said. “Not if I have anything to say about it.”

Rose kissed him, partly because she was overwhelmed with love, partly because she didn’t know how to respond. He reciprocated, slowly guiding her back towards the bed, and this time he didn’t pull away as he crawled over her. Her hands rested on his shoulders, unsure of where to go, and he cautiously traced a hand up her side.

The Doctor had studied Gallifreyan anatomy extensively and, should anyone ask him, he could have named ten nerve clusters that would be ideal erogenous zones. But with Rose beneath him, her mouth against his and her hands slowly migrating around his back, he felt himself struggling to remember.

His hand fumbled at her breast and Rose squirmed slightly, wincing in pain when he did something wrong. “Sorry,” he mumbled, then made it up to her by accidentally finding a place behind her ear that made her whimper. Her hands were running up and down his spine, and he fought a shiver as he moved down her neck to where it met her shoulder. 

Rose moved one of his hands between her thighs as she directed his mouth back to hers, and he took the hint. Rose arched against him when he found the small bundle of nerves, and it didn’t take long before he knew she was ready.

Rose, meanwhile, hadn’t been passive. Shortly after she had reminded him that she needed a little help, she had taken him in hand and began stroking, trying to find a rhythm he liked. Their kiss was a little bit sloppy and their teeth clicked together once, but they were determined and eventually Rose was squirming beneath him and he was between her thighs and oh.

When he had imagined this moment in a bit of rebellious thinking (even before he had started courting Rose), he hadn’t imagined it to be so… perfect. And overwhelming. “You okay?” he asked and Rose nodded before he began to push himself more firmly into her.

She bit her lip and felt a stretching sensation but no pain like she had been led to believe. He rested there for a moment, shaking, as she adjusted. “I don’t know how long I can hold on,” the Doctor confessed. “This is… It’s overwhelming.”

Rose shifted beneath him. “Just… just start moving,” she replied. 

Their rhythm was awkward. She accidentally knocked him over and he pulled out her completely a few times on accident, and he came long before she was ready. He apologized profusely amid Rose’s giggling and he experimented with his mouth and fingers before she was gasping and clutching at his hair tightly. She came with a bitten-back groan and he smugly announced that he had found his true talent at last.

Once Rose had recovered she rolled over to look at him. “It wasn’t what I expected,” she admitted.

He played with one of her hands. “We’ll get better. Er, assuming you want to do it again, of course.”

She grinned. “Yeah. I do. Practice makes perfect.”

“You make it sound like it was awful,” he whined.

“Who was the one who finished early?” She reminded him.

He grumbled into a pillow and Rose curled against him.


	7. Chapter 7

After another and altogether more successful attempt, they were curled up under her blankets. Tempus had interrupted them early on, reminding them that he needed to be fed. The Doctor and Rose had spent one afternoon creating a small portal to the gardens, and Rose let Tempus through this before returning to the Doctor’s warm embrace.

She was currently on top of him, listening to one of his hearts with her hand covering the other. He was running one hand through her hair, humming an old nursery rhyme.

“Rose?” he asked when he was finished.

“Hmm?”

“Do you want to bond?”

She looked at him, puzzled. “We’re going to be bonded when we marry. Of course I do.”

“No,” he said, staring at the ceiling. “I mean a full, complete marriage bond. Not the basic link.”

Rose stared at him in astonishment. While the thought appealed to her, she was… nervous. “Doctor, I don’t know if… whatever is in my mind can hurt you, too,” she said, voice small.

He shook his head and pulled her closer. “I don’t believe that.”

“We’ll talk about this after we’re married,” she finally said. “The Council is going to grant me access to view Timelines tomorrow, so we’ll see how that goes.”

She felt him stiffen in surprise. “What?”

“I was going to tell you after I returned from the mission, but the news Braxiatel gave me made me forget. I was wondering if you could come with me, actually, as an anchor,” she replied.

He looked at her. “Am I allowed?”

Rose shrugged. “It’s not exactly protocol, but if we play me up as a nervous, frightened girl afraid of her own mind…”

“We might get them to underestimate you,” he chuckled. “Alright. I’ll be honored.”

She grinned at him. “You’ll help me read Timelines?”

“Of course!” he said, then rolled on top of her. “I’m sure you’ll need… lots of practice.”

Rose gasped as his fingers slid inside her. “I’m pretty sure this isn’t the standard way.”

“Oh no,” he murmured, trailing kisses to her chest. “But I can assure you, I’m an excellent teacher.”

She pulled him up for a kiss. “Of that I have no doubt.”

~*~

Rose, the Doctor thought, was an exceptionally good actress.

Granted, not all her nerves were faked. She was genuinely worried about what would happen once a majority of her shields were removed by Braxiatel (Rose had requested him because she felt the safest with him, much to the annoyance of the other Council members; he was relatively new to politics and they thought he was moving up the ranks much faster than preferred). Though the Doctor knew she wouldn’t be overwhelmed she didn’t quite believe him. She couldn’t remember what it was like to read Timelines as a child; from what her father had told him, Rose had been exceptionally good at it and had cried for days when it was taken from her.

One of the councilmembers, who Rose had told him was Nesapholthunackallo, was regarding him with a disapproving look. “And why are you here?”

“Arkytior requested me as an anchor,” he replied calmly. “She’s scared she’s going to overwhelmed, and I’m here to ensure that she doesn’t panic. Sir.”

His lips were pursed, but he nodded. “Request granted. Irving Braxiatel, are you ready?”

“Only when Arkytior is,” he replied. Braxiatel gave the Doctor a sly wink and she nodded.

The Doctor entered her mind first and, though Rose initially resisted, she let him in with a sigh. He was tempted to move in and set up camp, but busied himself with sending her reassuring thoughts. Braxiatel joined him moments later, a dark purple against the soft yellow glow of Rose’s mind. “Rose, are you aware of what I’m going to do?” he asked.

Rose sent a wave of affirmation. “You promise I won’t hurt you?” she asked in worry.

“We’ll be fine, Rose,” the Doctor soothed. “Remember what I said? Don’t focus on the Timelines. You’ll have plenty of time later. Just let them come and focus on something else.”

He felt her mental presence retreat and he was amused that her mind seemed to be arranged like her parent’s orchards. There was one dark and twisted tree that had a ‘keep away’ sign in front of it, and as he ghosted near he got the impressions of when Meriax tried to force her into a bond. He hurried away from it and followed after Braxiatel, who was looking at an abrupt steel wall.

“Rose,” Braxiatel said. “I need you to be ready to organize your mind once I start removing the walls. Can you expand your garden or are you creating something else?”

Rose thought for a moment, her thoughts whipping by at an incredible speed. “I’ll probably create something else. Are you going to build the other wall first?”

“Yes, but I promise I’ll be fast. And I won’t look, Rose. You won’t even know I’ve been gone.”

“Alright.”

Braxiatel’s dark purple presence vanished and the Doctor stood by the small crack in the shields.

Rose nudged against him. “I’ll be glad this wall is gone. It’s ugly.”

He chuckled- he suspected out loud as well- and nudged back. “I told Brax to make it more appealing. He threatened to make it look like lava but I think he was joking.”

“I’m not sure how I’m going to organize the Time traces,” Rose replied. “I was thinking of my mother’s greenhouse, but now I’m thinking of a quilt.”

He looked at the orchard. “Bit of a landscape difference. Why not the TARDIS gardens?”

“In case someone from the Council feels the need to check my shields, I don’t want them to ask how I know what they look like,” Rose admitted. “You’re at such a delicate stage in your research, I don’t want them to take it away from you.”

The Doctor was touched by her concern. “You don’t have to worry about me, Rose. You took a tour of the TARDIS gardens, remember? You could have just remembered from that time.”

Braxiatel’s voice interrupted them. “If you two are quite done?” he asked, dryly, and Rose flashed delight and apprehension as she realized the shields were mostly gone, riddled with holes. “I’ll let the rest of it down once you get it under control, but I’ll be here monitoring while the Doctor helps you organize your Time sense. Take your time.”

Rose went through the nearest hole and the Doctor followed after, reinforcing his own shields. Rose would need help in organizing her mind and she didn’t need the Doctor’s thoughts confusing her.

To his amusement, she immediately checked on the shields that Braxiatel had placed. Though he had threatened to create a lava wall they were met, instead, by a rose bush bristling with thorns.

“Well, you have to give him points for originality,” the Doctor muttered, and Rose shone with amusement and gratitude before constructing her TARDIS garden.

The Doctor helped her weave the Time traces together and shape them, and when they were finished he backed out of her mind carefully- but not after showing her a few images of what he planned to do to her later. Her dazed expression was, thankfully, written off as her getting used to the new sensations running through her mind.

She blinked as she pulled herself out of her meditative state and gasped slightly. The Doctor was wreathed in gold light, little dancing tendrils that wove through and around him. She traced one hovering by his right eye. “You’re beautiful,” she said, hushed, and the Timeline gave her the faintest echo of blue skies and green earth. The Doctor shivered slightly at her gesture. 

“Arkytior needs to be alone until she gets used to the sensations,” Braxiatel said. “Do you remember how to dim your senses?” he asked her. At her faint nod he stood and pulled a protesting Doctor out of the room.

“What was that about?” the Doctor demanded when they were in a small room that looked like a storage unit. 

“Doctor,” Braxiatel said and that shut him up. Even after he graduated, his older brother had insisted on calling him by his childhood nickname. With his use of his chosen name he knew it was serious.

Braxiatel paced for a second before turning back to look at his younger brother. “When it comes time to create a marriage bond with Rose, I need you to promise me something.”

“What?” the Doctor asked, warily.

“You must not break my shield until She lets you,” he said and the Doctor had a feeling he wasn’t talking about Rose. “Rose isn’t able to handle what the Vortex unlocked within her. Not yet. One day she’ll be able to harness her true potential but do not push her past her limits.”

He frowned. “Brax, Rose isn’t a delicate flower.”

“I know that, and I wouldn’t be warning you if I wasn’t concerned. Promise me, Doctor, that you’ll listen this once.”

The Doctor knew his brother like he knew the hidden paths and hideaways in the Citadel, but he had never seen Braxiatel like this. His brother was sly and a master at doing things behind the scenes, his words usually rife with hidden meaning that was often joking as much as it was condescending, and he had indulged the Doctor in his escapades with he was younger. But the plain worry etched on his brother’s face was new. Whatever he had seen in Rose’s mind had caused his brother to let down his guard and that, more than anything, proved that Braxiatel was telling the truth.

But despite his loyalty and irreverent camaraderie with his brother, the Doctor’s main focus and priority was Rose. “I promise that I won’t do anything that will put her life in danger,” he finally said and his brother relaxed.

“Come. We need to return before the Council gets suspicious.”

The Doctor followed him out and moved to Rose’s side, who was looking more alert and flashed him a tiny smirk- she clearly hadn’t forgotten about the images he had shown her. He smirked back. “Are you feeling better?”

“My head feels… full,” Rose admitted. “It’s going to take a while to get used to.”

“The Doctor has agreed to be your monitor for the next few weeks,” Braxiatel said. “We’ve already attached his room to yours so that in case anything happens he can respond, and there’s a comm in both rooms that has a direct line to my office.” He looked at Rose. “If you adjust and there aren’t any… incidents… after three weeks, you may return to your regular duties.”

Rose looked confused. “Regular duties?”

“Did I not tell you? You have three weeks off to adjust,” Braxiatel replied with faint smile. “Do spend it wisely.”

The Doctor’s eyes gleamed. “I’ll be sure to run her through some mental exercises. Is that all?”

A Council member the Doctor didn’t know nodded and they left as fast as was deemed appropriate. As soon as they were out of the room, however, they exchanged giddy smiles. “Race you?” she asked.

“On three,” he said and took off.

“Not fair!” Rose laughed and chased after him. She ended up winning because he crashed into someone as he was turning a corner, and Rose gave him a triumphant smile from her position on the bed when he finally entered the room after disentangling himself and picking up the dropped documents. Tempus was in his room, which was now accessible through a door near her en suite.

“Can I just say,” he said as he stalked towards her, “how happy I am that you no longer live in the student wing?”

Rose smiled coquettishly. “Do you know how annoyed I am that you live ten floors above me?”

“Used to,” he replied as he began undressing. “Now, I’m right next door.”

She hummed as he crawled over the bed towards her. “I have a feeling you’ll be moving in while we’re off work.”

“Your feelings are correct.” He hovered over her. “And you are disappointingly clothed.”

“No one’s stopping you from changing that,” Rose pointed out.

“You’re right. I should do something about that,” he murmured, his lips on her neck. 

She sighed and arched against him immediately afterwards. His hands really were magical.


	8. Chapter 8

The Doctor waited as the attendant scrutinized his forms, making sure everything was perfect before he finally allowed him through. Rose was in the archives collaborating with Romana, a Time Lord he had met once or twice but never really talked to. She was more friends with Rose than anything, since Romana had an uncanny ability to see right through him. So did Rose, but with her she used it to help him. Romana just made fun.

Rose was, unfortunately, nowhere to be seen, but one of Romana’s colleagues was. He pointed the Doctor in the right direction, but even with the map he was soon hopelessly lost. When he came to an aisle flanked by Phyons, he knew he was lost. 

He grumbled and sat at one of the statues, looking at the map. He wasn’t entirely sure how he had messed up and, after he had dropped it, he was sure he had picked it up the right way. Perhaps not? His scowl deepened when he realized that the section he was in wasn’t on the parchment and he started looking around for clues.

The tomes here were made out of paper, not the info-cubes or crystals that were used now, which indicated that the section was old- probably from when the Archives was first created. He could feel a subtle telepathic barrier around the books, but what it was trying to say he wasn’t sure; it prevented him from reading the titles, at least, but his eyes widened when he saw that one had the sign of the Other stamped into the spine. There were very few records that remained from when Rassilon was in power and the seal meant that it was handled, at one point, by the Other. 

Before he could investigate further, though, Romana rounded the corner, glaring. “What are you doing here?” she hissed, grabbing his arm and leading him away. “Only the Council is allowed here, the telepathic barriers were supposed to keep you away!”

“I never was good at following directions,” he shrugged. “What section is that?”

“I don’t know, and I don’t care. You’re lucky I was the one to receive the notification!” Though the Doctor attempted to shake her grip she didn’t let him go. “If Rose wasn’t a friend…”

“You have a funny way of showing mercy,” he grumbled and Romana tugged at him sharply before they finally reached where Rose was sitting.

Rose was comparing an artefact with a glowing infocube and grinned at him when Romana shoved him down in a chair. “Get turned around then?” she asked, setting the infocube down and making a note on her report. Tempus was under the table and he thumped his tail in greeting.

“The map was wrong,” he said defensively. “We’re clearly right around the corner from the entrance, and yet I was given a map that led me who knows where.”

Romana shook her head. “Yancil is an idiot, you should have asked the attendant before you entered. Now, I’m going to finish my job. Do you need any more help, Rose?”

She shook her head. “I’m fine, Romana. Thanks.” 

Since Rose was still going to be a while and he only joined her so they could get dinner together, he asked if he was able to access the Matrix. Rose nodded absently, and he moved over to the small cubicle and joined with the telepathic circuit.

Rose watched him go with a small smile, knowing that he had been missing her more often than late. The survey team had come back with a large collection of items from Sophovillia and Rose had recently been promoted to head archiver; she was organizing the interns and doing her own research, studying the social climates on Jerfil and the potential Timelines. She was in the middle of constructing a model of its entire history from the formation to the death and, if she did well for the committee, she could be accepted into a teaching position. The Doctor, she knew, avoided the Academy like it contained a plague, but Rose didn’t mind it. She truly believed that she could do good there, shaping the minds of her students so that they could look at the world around them in a more quizzical light, rather than accept everything they were told as fact.

When Rose was done, she connected to the Matrix to find her wayward beau and drag him out. He was enmeshed in the paradox around H’lax, muttering about a knot that he couldn’t seem to unravel. She knew that he had made the paradox his side-project and that it had made him the laughing-stock of his colleagues, but he was stubborn and didn’t care what the others thought.

After finally dragging him away and reminding him of their reservation, she led him out of the Archives, nodding goodbye to Romana before leaving. “How has your experimentation going?” Rose asked. “You said something about a knot?”

The Doctor nodded absently as he rested his hand on Tempus’ back. The wolf had been missing him lately. “I was running a program over the H’lax paradox and I noticed a blip in the numbers. It was… infinitesimal, really, and I only caught it because I happened to stop the program at the exact spot it occurred. Since the paradox is a continuous loop it was very curious to see that there is a possible stitch in the paradox.”

She frowned. “But… that means it isn’t a naturally occurring paradox. If there’s a reset point…”

“Someone is deliberately causing it,” he finished for her. “But who, and better yet, why?”

Rose tapped her fingers against her thigh. “I suppose only a visit to H’lax will give us the answers, but I don’t think stepping into a paradox is the best feeling in the world.”

“I’ve asked your father for help in creating an even more sensitive scanner,” he said. “If it works, it’ll be easier to recognize the seam and what is causing it.”

“Then you’ve done all you can and shouldn’t let it worry you,” Rose said. “Now I’ve been looking forward to this dinner for months so we better not be late.”

He smiled at her. “Well then, if you’re thinking what I’m thinking…”

“Run?” she asked.

“My thoughts exactly,” he said and they took off down the hall.

~*~

They reached the small pond where they had first taken Tempus a short while later, making use of the teleports in the Citadel to get there faster. She grinned in delight at the picnic he had arranged, settling onto the blanket with a sigh beside the Doctor and smiling as Tempus laid his head in his lap. “So what did you pack?”

“Your favorite,” he said, as he pulled out several containers. “And some bananas that your mum sent me.”

Rose grinned. “She’s planted three more trees because of you. Claims that if she let you, you’d eat the entire grove.”

He smiled. “After eating the nasty nutrition bars they served at the Academy every morning? Your mother’s banana groves are a life saver. She still refuses to send me her pescat recipe.”

“That’s because you wouldn’t have a use for her if she did,” Rose told him as she grabbed one of the containers. “Schlenk berries! You really did go all out.”

“Only the best for you,” he replied. “Plus I’m trying to butter you up.”

“Oh, no, what is it this time?” Rose sighed. “Need access to archives? The museum?”

He tugged on his robe. “Er, actually, my parents are hosting a gathering next week, and since we’re betrothed…”

“I’m expected to be there. Your mother won’t ignore me again, will she?”

He nudged her. “It wasn’t really her fault last time, you know. You just so happened to visit when she was in the middle of a project.”

“She’s a Councilmember, right?” Rose asked. “Well, that certainly explains a lot.”

The Doctor lowered his shields slightly so she could feel his emotions. “Not everyone is prejudiced, Rose. I had to get my rebellious streak from somewhere,” he added.

She smiled at him, letting her apology wash between them before removing the rest of the containers. “Come on, might as well eat. I have to find my formal attire and that awful collar.”

“You mean the headpiece of promised boredom?” he grumbled. 

Rose considered. “Trophy of Inflated Egos?

“Headdress of Pomposity?” he offered and took a bite out of some pasta.

She settled on the soup. “No, no, The Ostentatious Decoration of Self-Imposed and False Grandeur.”

“Awful Torture Device,” he announced and they toasted each other in agreement.

“I’ll have to wear my chapter robes,” Rose complained. “I look awful in heliotrope. Why couldn’t we have something like red, or blue?”

He snorted. “I have to wear red and orange. You can’t get more ostentatious than that, it’s like I’m my own mini-Gallifrey. Even my collar of annoying proportions is like the suns.”

“But who decides on heliotrope?” Rose complained. “It’s like they were late to the party and got whatever was left over!”

The Doctor dug through the basket and handed her some bread so she could absorb the remainders of her soup. “It’s social attire so you don’t have to wear the formal robes. That dress that’s hidden in your wardrobe will be perfect.”

Rose grinned at him. “You just like the way it shows off my legs.”

“That too,” he said happily. “And since we’re staying the night…”

“Sure your parents and their guests won’t be scandalized?” Rose grinned.

He fed her a Schlenk berry, ignoring Tempus’ whine as he dislodged the wolf from his lap. “I’ll be sure to place your room close enough to avoid suspicion, but far enough away that we won’t be interrupted. And if we’re late joining the others for breakfast, I can simply claim that you got lost.”

“And what if your mother or someone else comes to escort me?” Rose asked, one hand cupping the back of his head. 

He smirked. “I’ll be sure to let everyone know that I’ll be in charge of your well-being.”

“Just my well-being?” She grinned. 

The Doctor kissed her before replying. “Your everything,” he promised sincerely.

~*~

Rose hummed as she debated between two outfits, one shorter and plainer, but the other more richly decorated even if it swept the floor. She knew the Doctor was looking forward to the shorter dress, but she wanted to make a good impression on the guests. And his mother. She had only met her once, at the first dinner Rose had attended because she and the Doctor had worked late on a project. She had been a kind woman, if reserved, and the Doctor shared her bright blue eyes. However, she had left early due to a call from a fellow Councilmember.

She finally selected the plainer but more flattering gown, sitting down to braid her hair. Her ornamental collar was resting at her feet, a dark silver carved with the Gallifreyan symbols that depicted her Chapter motto.

She had just finished placing the last pin in her hair when she heard the Doctor enter and she smiled as Tempus got up to greet him. The wolf was getting on in years, but he still greeted the Doctor with boundless energy.

“Almost ready!” Rose said as she picked up the collar and carefully fitted it over her shoulders. It automatically connected to the fabric, and she waited until the tingles faded before giving herself a look-over before stepping into her shoes and walking out of her en suite.

The Doctor was wearing his standard robes, his collar a plain gold with only the barest of script around the edge. She noticed that he was already fidgeting with it, his hands gripping the bottom, grimacing at the feel of the light-weight material. “You know you’re not supposed to notice it, right?” she smiled.

“I still do,” he complained, then paused when he noticed her. He smiled. “Rose, you look stunning.”

She smiled and wiped a smudge of grease away from his eyebrow. “Did you come here directly after work?”

“I’m close to my breakthrough, Rose, I know I am,” he insisted. “I can practically smell it.”

“Well at least you weren’t late,” she said. “Now we’d best go. Don’t want to make a poor impression on your relatives and their friends.”

He frowned. “Friend isn’t the right word. Allies, maybe.”

Rose stopped as she told Tempus to stay put, and they opened the small portal so he could come and go between her rooms and the gardens as he pleased. With that done, they utilized the small transports around the citadel to transport to his family home.

She shook her head as they landed, getting rid of the funny feeling that came over her whenever she traversed space without reliable shields. The Doctor was grumbling as he scratched irritably at his ear. “It’s so odd that your ear itches,” she giggled as they walked up to the front of his house. “My head just feels fuzzy.”

“I would prefer that,” he sighed and forced a smile as the door opened. “Uncle Hesperia,” he said politely.

“Doctor,” he said, a note of distaste in his voice. “And you must be his betrothed.”

She nodded politely. “Pleasure to meet you,” she said and he stepped aside to let them enter before leaving the room.

“Sorry about him,” the Doctor whispered as he led her to the gathering room. “He recently regenerated after being a woman for nearly 2000 years. He’s still getting used to it.”

Rose looked around. “Where’s the automated staff?”

“Eh, around. Father considers them a nuisance when there’s a large amount of guests. Which is probably why Hesperia was annoyed.” There came the sound of conversation as they rounded the corner and he grimaced. “The crystal room. Of course. There must be someone here they want to impress.”

Rose’s fingers twitched before she took a deep breath and nodded. They passed through the wall-barrier easily and Rose was momentarily blinded by the shine.

The entire room sparkled. Pale pink crystal was carved and carefully placed in intricate and complex patterns all along the floor, each one adding to an overall map of Gallifrey. Pale orange crystal filled in the gaps and the far wall was a solid window as it overlooked the panoramic view from the side of Mount Cadon. The walls were crystal of a soft red, with the high, vaulted ceiling shining like Gallifrey’s two suns- the smaller purple still blazing as bright as the larger red and orange. 

“Beautiful,” she murmured, reflexively, and he gave her a small smile before they moved through the crowd to see his parents.

The gathering was boring, but Rose soon found that Romana’s parents were there and spent some time talking to them, and debating the merits of off-planet surveys. Rose and Romana’s father were for it- after all, they were the guardians of the web of time. Romana’s mother was of the mind that they should leave well enough alone, since the Universe had gone on just fine before Rassilon had unlocked their potential.

Things went south shortly after dinner, when Rose was conversing with the Doctor’s mother. She was explaining a change in the TARDIS flight laws and they grinned at each other when Rose commented that there was no way the Doctor would be able to pass his flight test now. It was then that one of the Doctor’s cousins walked up and started quizzing Rose about her background.

She knew that the Doctor’s family was firmly entrenched in the Prydonian Chapter and that hers wasn’t very prominent, but at the man’s distasteful glance at her robes she stiffened slightly. Sure, her chapter mostly consisted of archivers, but that didn’t mean others hadn’t branched out and that the Prydonian chapter didn’t overlap with hers. “Your mother is an outsider, correct?” he asked in the middle of Rose proudly explaining one of her father’s inventions.

Rose paused and the Doctor’s mother gave her a sympathetic glance. “She was born to Time Lord parents but she was disowned when she didn’t have the ability to regenerate. She saved my father’s life when he injured himself, and he married her out of gratitude.”

The man sniffed. “Be that as it may, she hardly deserves a place in Time Lord society when she’s not even a Time Lord. We should have forbidden them access to the CIty centuries ago.”

Rose took a deep breath, forcing herself to count to ten before she replied. “The Other wasn’t a Time Lord, and yet he’s one of Gallifrey’s greatest heroes. I believe that everyone should be treated with the same respect, regardless of their ability to regenerate or not.”

He narrowed his eyes. “I can see why the Council doesn’t like you. They should have locked you up after that stunt you pulled during initiation.”

Rose’s blood ran cold, but before she could respond Braxiatel materialized behind her. “What happened at the Untempered Schism was hardly her fault, and if I remember correctly, Cousin, you sobbed like a newborn for a week afterwards,” he said calmly. 

Braxiatel received a nasty look. “I’m not surprised Theta picked someone from such a lowly house, they were the only ones who would take him.”

“His name is the Doctor,” Rose said firmly. “He chose it, you should respect that. And if anything, I’m doing him a favor by becoming his betrothed. I was approached by far more distinguished houses than yours for marriage.”

The Doctor wandered up as all four were glaring at one party or the other. “Rose, come here,” he said happily, clearly a little drunk. “I want to introduce you to my favorite cousin.”

“Excuse me,” she said sweetly and left for far more pleasurable company.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Council delivers a surprising verdict, and Rose interviews for her dream position.

Rose knelt before the small altar, the box glowing with Time traces as the priest read off the lines in a somber voice. The Doctor’s hand was warm and reassuring in hers, even if they were wearing gloves.

Behind them, their families stood- her mum and dad on her side, and the Doctor’s parents plus Braxiatel on his. They had already acknowledged and approved of the nature of their courtship, and all that was left was the ceremony and the actual wedding, which wouldn’t be planned until this final step.

When the priest finally finished, they reached towards the box with their intertwined hands, placing them and their spare hands on top of the box. It glowed brightly for a second before abruptly turning grey.

They waited, patiently, as the box ticked, reading their Timelines and determining if they were compatible. Even with his parent’s approval, even after going through all the appropriate steps, this was the defining step. Without compatible Timelines, the Council wouldn’t approve, and they would be shuffled off to whoever else would take them.

After a few agonizing minutes, the box dinged and glowed silver, before exploding into golden sparkles. They hovered over the box for a few seconds, before sinking back into it where the box continued to glow gold.

They all stared at it, unsure of what that had meant. Normally the box would glow silver if compatible or red if not, but gold was an unheard of phenomenon.

When the box clicked off, seemingly done with it’s pronouncement, everyone looked up at the priest in anticipation. It was their duty to interpret the results one way or another, and though this certainly wasn’t a … standard response, they needed a result.

The priest looked shocked, staring at the box. “This has only happened once,” he breathed, then looked at Rose and the Doctor, wide-eyed. 

“So, can we get married?” Rose asked, politely, after the priest was quiet for nearly three minutes.

“You two...your Timelines are nearly one strand, they are woven so tightly together. To separate one would sever the other, and the results would be… cataclysmic. I would no more deny you the right to marriage as I would betray Gallifrey.” He looked away, troubled. “I must bring my findings to the Council. It shall be hard explaining the results to such close-minded individuals, but they cannot deny it for long.” He bent down and took their intertwined hands between his. “Rose, Doctor, there will no doubt be opposition. Do not let it break you.” He nodded and stepped away before leaving through the back door.

Braxiatel broke the silence. “I shouldn’t be surprised by anything that happens to you two anymore. Clearly, you do not know the definition of ‘impossible’.”

The Doctor chuckled weakly. “I don’t know how to explain it any more than you do, Brax.” He turned shining blue eyes to Rose. “Still want to marry me?”

She beamed. “You’re stuck with me.”

Her mother was crying when Rose went to her. “Oh, my baby is getting married. I always knew there was a connection between you two, but I never dreamed of this!”

“Mum, stop making a scene,” Rose muttered, but she was smiling. “And before you say anything, the Doctor and I are going to have to compromise on a lot of things, so don’t be disappointed when you don’t have your own way.”

“Oh sweetheart, it’s fine. So long as you’re happy, I’m happy,” she said.

Her father hugged her too before turning to the Doctor. “You look after her, Doctor,” he said firmly. “She’s our only daughter, and things have never been easy for her.”

The Doctor took her hand but looked at him square in the eyes. “I will always put Rose first, sir. You have my solemn oath.”

Rose’s father nodded and Brax joined them. “The Council should be making their verdict soon.” He looked at Rose and she swallowed. “I wouldn’t worry. This is one thing they can’t manipulate.”

The Doctor’s mother started talking to Jaquelan and Rose attempted to make small talk with the Doctor’s father. They all fell silent when the priest returned.

“The Council approves of your request and grants you permission,” he replied. “However, because this is a highly unusual case, they ask that you wait twice as long until you get married.”

“What!” Jaquelan shouted and Peteran shushed her.

The priest looked uncomfortable. “That is the ruling.”

The Doctor narrowed his eyes. “Is that all?”

“That is all the stipulations.”

He nodded. “Then please tell the Council that we will respect their decision.”

They stared at him, but the Priest left, relieved. “Doctor,” Rose began but he shook his head.

“Something tells me that we need to humour them, Rose. There will doubtless be a time in the future when we get on their nerves, so we need to play nice.”

She sighed. “Alright. But I’m still moving in with you.”

“You better.”

They left the temple, their mothers talking about when they were going to meet up for wedding plans, Braxiatel talking quietly to his father. The energy was subdued somewhat, but when the families parted ways they genuinely meant it when they promised to meet up soon.

“Think Tempus has missed us by now?” Rose asked as they walked back to his rooms.

“I doubt it. He’s been sleeping a lot lately.” He kept his gaze straight ahead. “You know he’s nearing the end of his lifespan.”

She closed her eyes briefly. “I know. And it’ll hurt. But that doesn’t make all these years worth anything less.”

He smiled softly at her. “That’s what I love about you, Rose.”

“What?”

The Doctor didn’t answer. “Come on, we need to move you out. Call me possessive, but I want you in my bed tonight.”

Rose smirked at him. “Possessive isn’t the word I would use.”

“Oh really? What would you use?”

She whispered a few words in his ear and his grin widened. “I wouldn’t want to disappoint.”

“We’d better get back, then,” she said and, after a beat, they charged towards the Citadel.

~*~

“How’s your research coming?” Rose asked as they cuddled in bed, tracing sonnets in Old High Gallifreyan on his bare chest.

“Your father is nearly done with the sensor, so I should be making progress soon,” he replied. “Until then, I’ll ignore the sneers and snide comments from my peers.”

Rose looked at him, concerned. “Doctor…”

He pressed a kiss to her forehead. “I’ll be fine, Rose. They won’t be laughing after I present my facts.”

“I hope you get enough proof to wipe all the smirks off their faces,” she said sincerely. “Not to mention that it’s impressive enough to finish your doctoral studies.”

“No, this is separate,” he said. “My thesis is over inter-dimensional travel without the use of the Eye of Harmony.”

Rose frowned. “Why?”

“Well we can’t all have TARDIS’s, can we? This is basically a way of travel between parallels without their use.”

“Still a bit annoyed at failing your driving exam?” Rose teased.

He grumbled at her and Rose giggled against his shoulder. “I landed it perfectly well, thank you very much. Just because I missed the target…”

“You landed in the sewers,” she interrupted.

“Maybe I wasn’t meant to land across the field, maybe I was supposed to land in the sewers,” he continued. “Now we’ll never know.”

The alarm chimed pleasantly in Rose’s ear and she rolled off him. He made a disappointed noise and reached for her. “I have to get ready. I have an interview for the academy this afternoon.”

He grinned at her. “Good luck.”

“Thanks. Maybe if I’m lucky you’ll be looking at the next Foreign Culture professor,” she replied as she walked to the wardrobe. The Doctor remained in bed, watching with hooded eyes as she carefully got dressed, choosing her more formal attire as she put her hair up into an intricate braided knot.

“You still need to teach me how to braid, you know,” he said conversationally as she pinned the last one in place.

She smiled. “One day, maybe, when we aren’t busy with other things. Until then, I’m going to collect the things I need for my presentation and practice,” she said.

“You’ll do wonderful,” he said. “Remember, pretend like you know everything and act even more haughty than the review committee, and you’ll do fine.”

Rose laughed. “I know it’s your day off, but at least get dressed at some point. Mother said something about visiting and I want to be the only one to see you like that.”

She left as the Doctor scrambled to the wardrobe in a panic, nearly tripping over Tempus as he went.

~*~

The presentation went smoothly, Rose covering all the necessary points that she was required too as well as adding more; the questions were answered with ease, and though they tried to confuse her she remained steady. Even when they attempted to bring up controversial issues Rose remained elusive, having learned the art of double-speak from the Doctor, who had weaseled his way out of many predicaments during their Academy years.

At least, she had thought it was going well.

“You are a member of the Patrex chapter, correct?” one of the members of the committee asked.

Rose paused for a second. “Yes, sir.” She looked at the orange and green robes that were present, trying to hide her sudden nerves.

“They are one of the lesser houses,” another member spoke up. “What makes you think you’re more qualified to teach than someone from Prydonia or Arcalia?”

She subtly drummed her fingers against her thigh. “I have been studying various cultures for nearly two decades outside of the Academy, sirs and ladies. I am the youngest member on the museum board, and if you would look at my Academy reports I scored the highest marks on culture the Academy has seen for the past two hundred years. My model of Lilllllllllam’s social hierarchy was even used as the base model for the future classes. I may be of the Patrexian chapter, but I am more than qualified for this position.”

They stared at her a moment longer before one of them nodded. “You are dismissed. We will inform you of our decision within a week.”

Rose bowed respectfully and left after collecting her presentation sheet, swiftly heading towards hers and the Doctor’s rooms. She had taken the day off of work at the museum to prepare for the interview, and was relieved she had had the foresight to do so; she was exhausted. After unpinning her hair and changing into a more comfortable change of clothes, she settled onto one of the low couches near the window overlooking the gardens. She picked up the small golden orb the Doctor had given her so long ago and smiled as she pressed the button that would bring up her current novel.

Over the years he had tinkered with it more, adding an orange section that played holovids from various worlds and centuries, and a brown one that acted as a portable night light; it hovered at the same distance and height that the user placed it, and she had spent one afternoon giggling because she had once placed it over the Doctor’s head like a floating light bulb. He had found out eventually and had tickled her, but it had been worth it. 

She was nearly done when the Doctor returned from the lab and he settled down beside her. “How’d it go today?” he asked, a drink appearing on the table after he selected it from the small screen nearby. 

“They said they’d let me know within a week,” Rose replied. “And I thought I was doing well until they made a comment about my chapter.”

“You’ll be Prydonian soon enough,” he said. “Surely they know that?”

Rose sighed in frustration. “Yes, but that shouldn’t mean anything! Why does it matter what Chapter I was born into against my will? My knowledge should be the most important thing!”

“I’m sure it’ll be fine,” he said gently. “It’s not like culture is a popular choice, so you won’t have a lot of competition.”

“I’m sure they’ll pass me over out of spite,” she muttered.

He pressed a kiss to her forehead. “I have a cousin on the board, I’ll see if I can’t get Braxiatel to sway his judgement.”  
“Braxiatel?” Rose asked.

“He owes me a few favors, and this way I won’t be indebted to anyone on the review committee,” the Doctor smirked. “Plus, I want to see you in those professor robes. On you they’d be very flattering.”

“You better disable the cameras and regulation sensors in my maybe-office,” Rose smiled.

He nuzzled her shoulder. “Oh, definitely. Though I worry about those young men that you will have as students. They may get the wrong idea and want you for themselves.”

Rose giggled. “Don’t be silly, we’re engaged. Nothing can take you from me now.”

“Take me away, eh?” He said. “You’re the empath here, remember? Very rare and valuable.”

She smiled and kissed him briefly. “Want me to meet you at the TARDIS gardens tomorrow? Or are you still at the lab?”

“No, I’m at the gardens. They still don’t know how the TARDISes are so healthy ever since I showed up,” he winked. “I just made up something about natural cycles in TARDIS growth that made them weaker every thousand years or so and they seemed to buy it.”

Rose nodded. “Same time, then. You’re in charge of dinner; I have a book to finish.”

He rolled his eyes but stood. “Your mother sent us another basket of fruits, so I’ll see if we can’t make a pie.”

“Don’t do it yourself!” She called after him, but didn’t hear his reply since she was already once more focussed on the words in front of her.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rose gets the results of her interview and Koschei has a proposition

There was something… off about the Doctor. 

He had been acting strange all day. Not that it was easy to tell, but she could. He was… gentler. More careful of his words and actions. She wasn’t sure what had happened, but it was nice. He wasn’t unaffectionate, but it was usually Rose instigating it. The past few days he had cuddled and shown affection without prompting, and at first she thought it was an anniversary; but the dates hadn’t matched up, unless he was celebrating the day they caused a fire in the linguistics lab. And since that had occurred with a rather alarming frequency, she didn’t know why he was celebrating that particular occurrence.

Three days after she got her answer.

She had come back to their rooms after a long day at the museum, helping a class of second-year Academy students during their assignment over Gallifreyan history. It had alarmed her how much different the curriculum was; surely her class hadn’t worshipped Rassilon and rise of the Time Lords that much…

“Doctor?” she called wearily when she entered and smiled absently at Tempus who was curled up near the fire pit. “You wouldn’t believe what happened…”

She trailed off when she saw him staring out the window of the bedroom, the telescope out of reach. She paused. “You okay?”

He didn’t reply at first, but when he turned to look at her she was immediately alarmed. “What happened? Doctor, were you hurt, did something happen at the lab…”

He merely handed her message cube.

Rose stared at it, and a part of her mind realized that it was an official document from the Academy Council and already opened, but mostly she was occupied with the message.

She had been turned down for the position.

The Doctor’s actions finally made sense. He had known that the results would be in soon and had been just as hopeful as her. When it had arrived that day he had probably opened it immediately, his natural curiosity not even making him stop and consider if it would be rude or even wanted. 

Rose had been thinking about the interview all week, of course. It was her dream, something she had been looking forward to ever since she had started helping with the class research projects. It had been stressful and demanding and exhausting… but she had loved every moment of it. They were curious, so full of questions and excitement, not quite jaded by the years of tradition and schooling, still eager to see what the world could offer. 

She hadn’t realized that she had collapsed until she realized the Doctor’s arms were around her and that he had led her to the bed. She let the message cube fall to the floor and curled into his side, crying quietly as she clung to him.

“It’ll be alright, Rose,” he whispered. “You’re doing a wonderful job at the museum and you’ll soon be leading your own expeditions. You’ve been off-planet more than I have! You’re turning into an adventuress.”

She managed a tiny smile. “And you were always the one declaring that you would steal a TARDIS and run away.”

“Remember that time we snuck into the planetarium and rigged it so that the next time a show was given it only played Earth cartoons?” he asked.

She nodded. “And when we dyed the aquarium water green so that the Polhs looked brown, and the caretakers didn’t want to admit anything was wrong so they pretended like they always looked like that.”

“Remember the time Koschei smuggled out the wine he filched from the tour of the Council?” he asked.

“I think all three of us showed up to Exams hungover,” she said. “And we blamed it on taking too many stimulants.”

“And we got the thirty minute lecture on the dangers of overdosing,” he continued. “But we still passed.”

She smiled as she remembered their past shenanigans. “Wasn’t as funny as the time I helped you get your Theoretical and Interdimensional Physics class trapped in that holoroom.”

“They each saw something different; I don’t think the Professor had ever been more confused in his life,” the Doctor chuckled. “And then there was your graduation.”

Rose laughed. “Right, the re-enactment of Godzilla. How’d you get it to look so real? I never did figure it out.”

“Time, patience, and luck,” he said, placing his finger on the side of his nose and winking. “I’ll never tell.”

She went for the ticklish spot right above his navel and he squirmed, his blue eyes alight with laughter. They tussled on the bed for a few minutes before calming, Rose with her chin on his chest. “Why do you think they rejected my application?” she finally asked, quietly.

He ran his fingers through her hair. “I don’t know. Perhaps the Council told them not to. Perhaps they were prejudiced. Perhaps they didn’t want to admit that you were better than the high and might Arcalians or Prydonians. In my opinion, you’re worth more than both houses combined.”

“You’re biased,” she replied and closed her eyes as she pressed her ear to his chest. “I’ll keep applying, and making contacts, but I felt like my only chance has slipped by.”

He kissed the top of her head. “Well, I am glad that I still get to spend time with you. Although I will mourn the loss of the suites that professors are able to access.”  
Rose giggled. “There’s nothing wrong with where we live now. We don’t need a lot of space; it’s just the two of us, and Tempus is sleeping more often than not. If you really want more room, we can move in with Braxiatel…”

“Anything but that!” He shuddered. “I don’t want him knowing what we get up to, thanks.”

“I think he suspects,” Rose replied. “You weren’t exactly subtle that day I gained access to my Time senses.”

“Worth it,” he sing-songed, then sighed. “Speaking of Braxiatel, he’s been… elusive lately.”

“What do you mean?”

“I tried speaking to him last week over something that happened in lab, but he was… dismissive. I know he’s been busy with the promotion that he’s still denying, but I guess… well, I miss my brother. We were never close, but I trust him. And now…” he shrugged. “I can’t even find him anymore.”

Rose looked at him, worried. “I’m sure he’s just busy, Doctor. Politics have never been easy, and with him such a rising star, he was to watch his tracks. He’ll talk when he’s ready.”

“I suppose.” They were silent for a moment before the Doctor rolled them so they were face-to-face. “You have a late start tomorrow, yes?”

“I do. What about you?”

“Oh… I create my own hours, Rose,” he grinned. “And I have calculated the exact second you have to fall asleep to get a decent night’s rest, and I intend to keep you busy until that very last second.”

She ran a hand down the bridge of his nose. “And what if I want to stay up later?”

“Well that’s entirely your fault, then,” he replied, seriously, before pulling her into a deep kiss. 

~*~

The Doctor muttered as he manipulated the atoms. His overseer had given him the task of improving upon the matter manipulation drives that powered most of the machinery on Gallifrey- it had been the invention that rendered money useless on Gallifrey, since anything could be created at the push of the button. There were traditional craftsmen, of course, for those that didn’t want the generic and functional decor, but it required a trade of goods or favors. Unfortunately it was decided that more options were needed over the already thousands of choices available, so he was tasked with finding out the correct coding to do so.  
Unfortunately, there had been a glitch in the system and he was trying to figure out what the issue was at the atomic level. It required precision and patience, the latter of which had never been his strong suit, and he wondered if his overseer hadn’t given it to him because she expected him to fail. Really, she should know by now that if something was bound to irk her, he would want to do it more.

He was making progress when a small alert zoomed over to him, blinking in his periphery. He sighed and sat the tools down, powering down the microscope and following the alert to his overseer’s lab. She was stacking a few radioactive blocks with purpose, but when she noticed him she gestured vaguely. “Visitor,” she said, and moved to grab some more.

The Doctor was surprised to see Koschei waiting for him. They hadn’t fallen out of contact after graduation, but the Doctor had chosen to continue studying while Koschei had joined the CIA. He was training to be an intelligence officer and it had strained their relationship somewhat; the Doctor, naturally curious, was hurt that Koschei was hiding things from him, but it was only to be expected.

“I’m not setting fire to Borusa’s office,” he said when his friend was within earshot. “That was fine when we were ten, but we’re adults now, Koschei.”

“It’s the Master now,” his friend replied, smirking. “And since when have you been an adult?”

The Doctor ignored the first comment. “I have several degrees, you know, that tends to be a hint.”

“Cheese making isn’t a degree, we all got that award when we were two.”

“It’s still on paper!” the Doctor protested. “Anyway, what do you need? I have a matter manipulator to get back to and a wormhole to create,” he continued.

Koschei looked around carefully. “Think you can take time off? I have an offer.”

“Threliancolviptiana is already angry at me for being behind schedule on the manipulator Koschei,” he told him.

“Theta-”

“Don’t call me that.”

“Don’t call me Koschei,” his friend shot back. “And you and I both know that you’re lying to her so that you can make yourself look better when you miraculously finish ahead of schedule.”

He groaned and conceded him the victory. “Alright, fine, you win. I can take a few hours off. My rooms are closer if you need to talk.”

Koschei eyed him. “Is Rose going to be there?”

“Most likely not- she’s leading a survey team to Tetching,” the Doctor replied. He tried not to let it bother him when he saw Koschei relax slightly. “What’s this about?”

“Work. It’ll be better if we talk in private.”

Intrigued, the Doctor picked up the pace and they were soon in the main living area. Koschei sat down on one of the couches while the Doctor prepared refreshments, and Tempus wandered over to lie at his feet when he finally joined his friend.

“So,” the Doctor said. “What’s got you all worried?” At his friends look he shrugged. “I’ve known you since we were kids and bonded over getting Braxiatel stuck in that ravine. You’re drumming your fingers again. So what is it?”

Koschei looked down at his drink. “I found some documents that I shouldn’t have when I was organizing some files. I think they were displaced; they were highly sensitive. The coding is complex and telepathic and I had to use the Borsch Algorithm just to figure out the key-code.”

The Doctor blinked. “And you still looked?”

“Not like I could ignore it,” Koschei grumbled. “And it was in my pile. Anyway, what I found… you aren’t going to like this.”

Koschei reached into his pocket and pulled out a small data cube. The Doctor placed it on the table, which quickly downloaded the information before displaying it. He inhaled sharply. “This… this is President Pundat’s files.”

“I know.” 

“Koschei, this… you don’t just find these in a random pile of reports! Where did you get these?” the Doctor asked in disbelief.

His friend frowned. “Why do you think I tried so hard to crack it? The CIA gives out these puzzles all the time, I thought it was another test!”

“Maybe it was one,” the Doctor said. “Maybe you were supposed to return them as soon as you got them.”

“I did. You’re holding the copy.” At the Doctor’s look he rolled his eyes. “I erased all evidence that I did so. I wasn’t Loomed yesterday. They were… very excited to have it back. Which is why I brought it to you, since it was clear I wasn’t supposed to have it. They asked me a lot of questions and were reviewing video footage when I left. I’m guessing someone stole it and meant to place it in their files instead of mine.”

“Glad you brought it here,” the Doctor said absently. “Like the old days, only we stole test answers.”

“And the Rose allowed us to cheat off of her in Culture,” he agreed.

The Doctor smirked. “No, she wrote our papers. We were on our own for the tests.” He frowned and selected a file, the Gallifreyan symbols shifting to the forefront of the table. “That’s odd…”

“What?”

The Doctor gestured at the symbols. “This is referring to the original citadel. But we’re in it. There is no other citadel.”

Koschei considered. “Search for original citadel,” he said.

The cube glowed for a moment before the appropriate files appeared. “What language is that?” the Doctor asked. “It’s not Old High Gallifreyan, it doesn’t even look native.”

“Some sort of code?” Koschei offered.

The Doctor shook his head. “I don’t know. Translate.” The cube remained still. “Translate the documents.”

No response.

“Definitely code,” Koschei said. “Look, you can crack it later. I brought this here so I could show you something.”

He pulled up different files. “Look. Pundat- and, it seems, his chosen replacement- have been making plans. And it doesn’t look good for Gallifreyans.”

“He’s making plans to forcibly evacuate the Outsiders,” the Doctor read. “But… why? We made a treaty ages ago with them. They’ve upheld their end and we haven’t had a civil war in a millenia.”

Koschei looked at him. “Don’t you know what this means? Rose’s mother is an outsider, Theta. If this passes…”

“It won’t,” the Doctor said firmly. “This is… foolish. I don’t like the Council but they’re logical. The Outsiders have done nothing to break the treaty and this won’t pass.”

“Theta, we can do something with this!” Koschei argued. “Think about it! We have Pundat’s files, we know every dirty secret… we can overthrow the government and make things right!”

The Doctor stared at him in horror. “What are you saying? That’s treason!”

“It’s the right thing,” Koschei said, adamantly.

The Doctor shook his head. “No. No, I won’t do this, and you should stop thinking about it. The system works, Koschei. Rassilon and the Other created this system so that it would last for as long as Gallifrey itself.”

“It’s corrupt, and you know it.” When the Doctor didn’t respond Koschei grabbed his upper arm. “Theta, don’t ignore it because you’re trying to play nice. We used to be rebels, just because you’re getting married…”

“Exactly!” the Doctor exclaimed. “Rose has been through enough, Koschei. I’m not following some harebrained scheme that is sure to get us caught and have her lose me and her family! This isn’t just thumbing our noses and leaving stink pods in offices. This is serious, with real consequences and danger!” He stood, grabbing Koschei and towing him towards the entrance. “I am going back to work, where I am going to forget that you ever said this, and you are going to do the same. We are going back to our lives, to our jobs, and try to make Gallifrey better by doing the right thing.” He glared. “Goodbye, Master.”

“You’ll realize I’m right, Doctor,” Koschei said scathingly. “You already know it. One day you’re going to see that I’m right.”

The Doctor walked away without a word.

He didn’t even realize that he had left the data cube on the table until he returned to his rooms later that day. He hated himself a little bit for keeping it.

He hated himself the most for lying to Rose about what it was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for how long it's been between chapters; I was working two jobs over the summer, then my dad started an affair with someone he only met a month and a half ago, and now my parents are going through a very bitter divorce while I try to keep my grades up in a very essay-heavy school semester. I'll try to keep writing and working on this story, but I don't know when I'll be able to update next. I apologize again for making everyone wait, and I hope that it won't take as long between updates next time.


End file.
